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13 Semi-Evergreen Plant Examples (Detailed List)

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In the garden, plants with semi evergreen foliage retain some of their leaves in the winter, which will eventually fall off later in the spring. Today, we present you examples of semi evergreen plants, as well as an explanation of the phenomenon.

 

What is a semi evergreen plant?

A shrub or tree with semi evergreen or semi evergreen foliage is a plant that retains some of its foliage during the winter, depending on the temperatures: the milder the winter, the longer the leaves will remain.

 

When spring arrives, the leaves will fall to make room for new ones. In reality, it is often more or less hardy evergreen plants that will react by losing more or less their leaves depending on the local winter climate.

 

13 semi-evergreen plants

1) Acacia

Acacia takes its name from the Greek word akis which means “the point”. It is a reference to the thorns that cover its branches and allow it to repel predators eager for its flowers and foliage. 

 

2) Ancolie

The name aquilegia comes from the Latin word aquila which means “eagle” in reference to the shape of its very recognizable flowers. Native to Europe, they are used in beds, as well as in rock flowers or in bouquets. Its particular flowering and its wide range of colors make the aquilegia a very appreciated flower in gardens.

 

3) Chives

Chives are an essential part of aromatic herbs. It sprinkles on salads, fish and omelettes.

 

4) Tarragon

Tarragon requires a light, fresh and well-drained soil. The location of the tarragon must be sunny and sheltered from the wind. Tarragon fears frost, so it should be protected in winter.

 

5) Gerbera

Sort of very colored daisy, the gerbera is a plant of the Asteraceae family. Native to South Africa, Madagascar or Asia depending on the species, it is popular in Mediterranean regions but has adapted to more temperate areas.

 

6) Gypsophila

With its graceful mist of small flowers, the gypsophila is synonymous with lightness and freshness. A dry ground plant, it is well suited for wild and maintenance-free gardens.

 

7) Daisy

Bushy plant recognizable by its large white flowers, the daisy belongs to the Asteraceae family. It is commonly found in Europe in the meadows but it can also be cultivated in the garden.

 

8) Lantana

Lantana tree, thousand flowers, golden basket or old maid are some of the little nicknames of the lantana, a perennial plant of which some varieties are shrubby. Known for its sublime umbels with multiple colors, the lantana is native to the tropical zones of South Africa, South America and Central America.

 

9) Elm

The elm is a beautiful rustic tree with a rustic air. Its wide rounded crown and its pretty oval and asymmetrical green leaves make the charm of this tree which almost disappeared because of the graphiosis.

 

10) Phlox

Phlox, whether dwarf, groundcover, stem or annual, marvel in the garden by the cloud of flowers that covers them, with a subtle perfume for some. They are superb bedding or rockery plants, whose delicacy is fully revealed in a priest’s garden or a bed of English perennials.

 

11) Sage

Sage is an aromatic that combines the useful with the pleasant. Not content to perfume our small dishes, it has many therapeutic virtues.

 

12) Privet

The privet is a shrub with evergreen foliage and white flowers, in fragrant clusters, attracting bees. Easy of culture, it dresses the bottom of the solid masses and draws compact hedges.

 

13) Verbena

It is THE plant of our herbal teas! The officinal verbena grows spontaneously on our meadows and country roads.

 

The different foliage

There are therefore several types of foliage: evergreen, semi evergreen or semi deciduous foliage and deciduous foliage.

 

Evergreen

The foliage lasts all year round. The plant will therefore keep its foliage for a long time. This means that the replacement of the leaf is not done systematically with the change of seasons.

 

In spring or over several years, the evergreen plant renews its foliage permanently, as for the old one, it falls progressively.

The evergreen plants are the ideal solution because :

 

  • they give the possibility to create opaque screens to protect you from prying eyes or wind ;
  • they ensure a decoration all year long in massif or hedge according to the variety;
  • they provide an excellent winter shelter for birds;
  • some are fast-growing.

The evergreen plants are often coniferous (fir, cedar, pine), some deciduous (boxwood, olive tree), but also lavender, St. John’s wort are evergreen plants.

 

Semi-evergreen or semi-deciduous

The plant retains some of its foliage all year round, as most of the foliage remains in place during the winter period, which does not prevent the leaves from being replaced in the summer.

 

Semi-evergreen plants are planted in isolation, in beds or in hedges depending on the variety.

Here are a few examples of semi evergreen plants: the common privet, honeysuckle, acacia, maple, but also columbine, fuschia, primrose…

 

Deciduous

Contrary to an evergreen plant, the deciduous plant keeps its leaves only a few months in the year, because its leaves fall in the fall to make room for others that appear in the spring. The soil will therefore benefit from the mineral salts extracted by the leaf that has fallen and disintegrated on the ground.

 

The deciduous tree will therefore change its appearance over the seasons. It will give shade in summer. On the contrary, it will bring good sunshine in winter.

The disadvantages of the deciduous plant are :

 

  • the loss of leaves in autumn, which requires a lot of work to collect the leaves from the ground;
  • Aesthetics: in winter, it is unsightly, sad and skeletal depending on the variety;
  • its lack of protection in winter against bad weather.

Here are some deciduous plants: linden, maple, beech, walnut, poplar, cherry, apple.

 

Summary

The foliage of a plant is one of its decorative attributes. The color, shape, and size of the leaves vary from one species to another. There are two main types of foliage, deciduous and evergreen.

 

The semi evergreen foliage is in fact simply that the plant keeps its leaves even though they will be replaced anyway in the summer. It is a little bit like if the plant wants to keep its deciduous leaves, but that it loses them anyway a little later.

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