How to Use Broadleaf Evergreens in Garden Design

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In the warmer half of the country, Broad-Leaf Evergreens take center stage. Northern gardens are filled with hardy but deciduous trees and shrubs that drop their leaves at the onset of winter, leaving the garden with a bleak appearance,. Garden design in southern gardens relies on the cheerful appearance of year-round gardening. Contributing to the effect are Boxwood, Nandina, Mahonia, Southern Magnolia, Tea Olive, Wax Myrtle, Holly and Cherry Laurel. 

Broadleaf evergreens are valued both as specimens and as hedges to provide structure, often called the “bones” of the landscape, year round. Taller broadleaf evergreens function well as privacy screens, or may be planted into rows as hedges to separate garden rooms. Other broad leaf evergreens are better for low hedges, parterres or more airy applications.  

One example is Centre Court™ Cherry Laurel, Prunus caroliniana, selected by Garden Debut® for its tight, compact branching structure, oval habit and fragrant white flowers in spring. This broadleaf evergreen is hardy to Zone 7 and can be pruned up into a tree form eventually reaching 30 feet.

Centre Court™ CherryLaurel may also be kept as an informal flowering hedge, or sheared occasionally into a formal hedge. Its dark green, glossy foliage and fragrant white flowers are followed by stone fruit that is relished by wild birds. Due to the Prussic Acid (hydrogen cyanide) content of its leaves, Centre Court™ is reliably deer proof.  

Photos courtesy WikiCommons and Garden Debut(R)