Best Evergreen Trees & Conifers
for Landscaping in Southwest Missouri
Evergreen trees are the best part of every landscape. They come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, colors, and textures.
Conifers are an excellent choice to fill up empty space in your lawn or garden because they provide a focal point that looks great through the winter.
If you’re looking to permanently upgrade your landscape or curb appeal, you can’t go wrong with an evergreen tree.
Myron Royce Gardens has been planting evergreen trees for over 30 years in Southwest Missouri, and we’ve collected a list of our favorites to share with you here.
Japanese Umbrella Pine
Sciadopitys verticillata
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun (prefers a little afternoon shade)
- Height: 25′
- Spread: 8-12′
- Growth Rate: 0.5-1′ per year
Long, soft needles grow in an umbrella shape from the tips of branches. Tree grows very slowly into a pyramid shape.
Colorado Blue Spruce
Picea pungens ‘Bakeri’ (or ‘Bacheri’)
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 18-30′
- Spread: 10-15′
- Growth Rate: 1′ per year
Bright blue foliage with upright pyramidal growth. Medium growth rate.
Picea pungens ‘Bonny Blue’
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: 25′
- Spread: 15′
- Growth Rate: 2′ per year
Known for its shorter needles and bright blue color.
Picea pungens ‘Fat Albert’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 15-25′
- Spread: 15′
- Growth Rate: 1-2′ per year
Slightly more compact growth habit with more consistent pyramidal shape.
Vanderwolf’s Pyramid Limber Pine
Pinus flexilis ‘Vanderwolf’s Pyramid’
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: 25′
- Spread: 12′
- Growth Rate: 2′ per year
Medium-size needles with a bluish tint on upturned branches. Very full, pyramidal growth.
Serbian Spruce
Picea omorika ‘Bruns’
- Light: Full Sun, Part Sun
- Height: 25-30′
- Spread: 8-10′
- Growth Rate: 0.5-1′ per year
Upright tree in pyramid shape with thick silvery foliage and short needles.
Picea omorika ‘Gotelli Weeping’
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: 25′
- Spread: 15′
- Growth Rate: 2′ per year
Elegant upright tree with weeping branches and two-tone green and blue foliage.
Green Giant Arborvitae
Thuja plicata x standishii ‘Green Giant’
- Light: Full Sun to Full Shade
- Height: 35’+
- Spread: 16′
- Growth Rate: 2-3′ per year
Soft foliage grows in flat leaves that ripple like waves in the wind. Green Giants are the #1 tree for privacy screens. Grows slower in the shade, and are smaller and not as dense.
Canadian Hemlock Tree
Tsuga canadensis
- Light: Part Sun, Shade
- Height: 40-50′
- Spread: 25-35′
- Growth Rate: 1-2′ per year
Native to Missouri, Canadian Hemlock grows into a pyramid of layered, weeping branches with short, soft needles. (Not related to the poisonous Hemlock plant.)
Loblolly Pine
Pinus taeda
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: 60-100′
- Spread: 20-35′
- Growth Rate: 2-3′ per year
Native to Missouri, Loblolly Pines have long, soft needles and tall, straight trunks lose that their lower branches when mature.
Picea rigida x taeda
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: 60-100′
- Spread: 20-35′
- Growth Rate: 2-3′ per year
Hybrid between Loblolly Pines and Pitch Pines. More cold-hardy than a Loblolly Pine.
Shortleaf Pine
Pinus echinata
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: 50-60′
- Spread: 20-35′
- Growth Rate: 1-2′ per year
Native to Missouri, Shortleaf Pine grows in a pyramid shape with foliage mostly clustered on the ends of branches, almost like clouds. Stately towering tree trunks lose their lower branches when mature.
Himalayan Cedar
Cedrus deodara ‘Karl Fuchs’
- Light: Full Sun
- Height: 15’+
- Spread: 4′
- Growth Rate: 6-8″ per year
Tall, skinny tree with small, blue-tinted needles brings a light and airy feel to your landscape.
Norway Spruce
Picea abies
- Light: Full Sun to Full Shade
- Height: 40-60′
- Spread: 25-30′
- Growth Rate: 2-4′ per year
Beautiful pyramid shape with deep green color. Branches grow upright, but needles droop downward off the branches, giving the tree an elegant look.
Conclusion
We hope you’ve found the evergreen trees that are right for you. Whether you want privacy trees or accents in your landscape, Myron Royce Gardens has the tree for you.
If you think you might want flowering trees instead, you can follow this link to our list of flowering trees for Southwest Missouri.
For more landscape inspiration, you can view our portfolios here.
If you’re interested in our services, just give us a call at 417-443-2648 or contact us here.
View more examples of Myron Royce Gardens tree nursery and landscaping:
About the Author
Myron Royce Gardens is a professional landscaping company based in Ozark, MO. We provide landscape design, installation, and maintenance services throughout the Springfield-Branson area.
We started this blog because we want to share our knowledge and expertise with everyone in Southwest Missouri. Landscaping is our passion, and we want it to be a pleasant experience for everyone.
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