Evergreen Border Plants

Ceanothus

• Ceanothus is also known as California lilac. While the vast majority of California lilacs are evergreen, there are a couple of varieties that are deciduous, so be careful when selecting your plants. These medium to large shrubs do flower with delicate, conical and very fragrant blooms in shades of blue and purple. Their blossoming season is very long, usually from the end of the last frost until the first true freeze of the next winter. Even when the flowers die and fall off, the thick, shiny foliage will keep going strong all year long.

Choisya

• Another name for Choisya is Mexican orange blossom. This is a small to medium shrub that does better in cooler climates, but is also drought-hardy. The overall appearance of the Choisya is fragile, with petite, elongated foliage and clusters of dainty, white blossoms that resemble true orange blossoms, but do not fruit. When in bloom, Choisya attracts desirable garden insects like honeybees and butterflies. The Mexican orange blossom grows very quickly and responds well to guided pruning and shaping.

Prunus Lusitanica

• If you are seeking an evergreen border with height, Prunus Lusitanica -- or Portuguese cherry laurel -- might work for you. These narrow shrubs can reach 10 to 20 feet in height and have brushy, dark green foliage with medium, oval-shaped leaves. Portuguese cherry laurel blossoms with white flowers during the traditional spring blooming season, but you will find that even the leaves are fragrant in the off-season.