Most garden Conifers are evergreen and an interesting feature of conifers is that their foliage in youth is quite distinct from than in mature trees.

In ancient times Conifers covered a far greater area of the world than they do now.

Conifers include the tallest living trees; the Californian redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) is a typical example. Most of the varieties grown in British gardens range from a few cm high to 6/10ft. in 10 years or so, with the exception of the Leylandii which can grow to 20ft. in this time without trimming.

The natural flora of the British Isles is almost without evergreen conifers.

Fortunately, our climate and soils are such that we can grow conifers from all the temperate parts of the world and many hundreds of introduced kinds grow well in our islands to provide timber in our forests and ornamental and shelter in our woodlands, parks and gardens.

Container grown conifers can be planted at any time of the year, but if you are planting bare root stock this can only be done at certain time of the year, early autumn or late spring.

Conifers do best in non polluted areas, as in these areas the foliage, being evergreen and not replenished every year as in deciduous trees and shrubs; get clogged up with impurities so they cannot function.

Mostly conifers in their natural habitat grow in fairly rich woodland soils where there is heavy rainfall. In general, conifers are not happy on soils with high lime content.

Conifers grown ornamentally need no pruning unless damaged.

Conifers for Hedges

The most well known heading conifer is the Leylandii, which has caused much controversy over the years. However, if it is kept trimmed to approximate. 6/8ft. high it develops into a very attractive and dense screen, offering wind protection and privacy to your garden.

The green Leylandii is perhaps the most popular, but for adding a little colour into your hedging, the golden varieties of Leylandii are well worth considering, these do not grow quite as fast as the green but offer that rich golden background to your flower beds and are as dense as its green counterpart.