Evergreen shrubs are the backbone of your Idaho Falls landscape.
They provide color and structure when everything else is dormant. But staying green all winter takes a toll. In our high-desert climate, even the heartiest boxwoods and junipers need more than just a little luck to survive.
Between our alkaline soil and drying winter winds, evergreens in Eastern Idaho face constant stress. Without proper fertilization, deep watering, and pest protection, these "dependable" plants can quickly turn brown and brittle.
To keep your landscape looking its best year-round, you have to address its specific nutritional and environmental needs.
Here is the professional guide to maintaining healthy evergreen shrubs in Idaho Falls and Rexburg, from spring feeding to winter protection.
Fertilizing Evergreen Shrubs
The best time to fertilize your evergreens is before new growth emerges, in early spring, through about mid-July.
Don’t apply fertilizer later than mid-July. It will encourage new growth late in the season, and new growth is more likely to suffer winter injury. (More on that in a bit.)
Evergreen shrubs typically don’t need as much fertilizer as deciduous shrubs, but a few signs show they need a boost:
- New growth is sparse or slow.
- Needles aren’t a healthy green color.
- Your evergreen shrubs are struggling to grow in very sandy or
heavy clay soil. - Shrubs have suffered damage from insects or disease.
Care for Evergreen Shrubs: Pruning
Prune evergreen shrubs regularly to maintain their shape.
Dead or dying branches not only look bad, but they leach out nutrients meant for healthy branches.
Check evergreen shrubs frequently for signs of damage or disease, and cut off affected branches right away to prevent the spread.
The best time to prune your evergreen shrubs is in early spring, just after they emerge from dormancy and before new growth begins. Never prune more than one-third of the foliage.
Evergreen Shrub Maintenance: The Best Soil
Evergreen shrubs like acidic soil. It helps them absorb nutrients better.
Need to boost your soil’s acidity? Add organic material, like manure, peat moss, or compost. Mulching with pine bark or pine mulch also helps to acidify the soil as it breaks down.
Caring for Evergreen Shrubs: Proper Watering
Many homeowners water their landscaping more often than it needs. Too much water can be as harmful as not enough.
Less frequent, deeper watering is better for your shrubs, encouraging roots to grow deeper in search of water.
Evergreen Shrub Maintenance Includes Winter Protection
Idaho winters are rough on evergreens.
Dry winds and winter sun can dry out conifer needles and broadleaf evergreen foliage.
When a sneaky midwinter thaw hits, plants are tricked into waking up. That tender new growth is vulnerable to the next freeze.
So, how to care for evergreen shrubs in Idaho through tough winters?
Mulch
You might just think about mulch in the spring, but it’s great for preventing winter damage to trees and shrubs. Kind of like that extra quilt you toss on your bed for the winter.
Add four inches or so of bark mulch around the base of your evergreens for a layer of toasty insulation. This will help the soil stay frozen to prevent heaving during freeze-thaw cycles.
Build a Windbreak
If you have evergreen shrubs in windy, exposed areas, consider building a windbreak to protect them by blocking drying winter wind.
Burlap Wrap
You can also wrap shrubs in burlap to keep their needles healthy. Wrapping them also helps protect them from damage from road salt sprayed by passing plows.
Evergreen Shrub Maintenance: Bye, Aphids
Chances are, your evergreen shrubs have aphids. How the heck do we know this, without even looking?
Everybody has aphids. The tiny pests are the most common insects found on trees, shrubs, and garden plants.
Don’t try looking for them. Aphids are tiny, soft-bodied insects less than a quarter-inch long, nearly invisible to the naked eye.
When a whole bunch of them gather to feast, like a bountiful bug buffet, their feeding can damage your evergreen shrubs.
Aphids move slowly, but they multiply quickly, so it’s important to get them under control before reproduction starts. Many generations can occur in one season.
Evergreen shrub maintenance includes three spray treatments a year to zap any aphids crawling on your shrubs. The foliage spray has a residual effect, too, lasting for 30 days to deter any hungry invaders.
It’s a lot easier to prevent aphids than to treat them after they show up, so add it to your spring evergreen shrub care to-do list.
Are Your Shrubs Ready for a New Best Friend?
Evergreens are pretty sturdy shrubs. They don’t need much.
But a bit of evergreen shrub maintenance throughout the year will keep them healthy and thriving in your landscaping.
Plant health care services are available for our Idaho Falls customers who use our full-service lawn care program.
That gives you extra peace of mind — choose an Idaho Falls professional lawn care service that bundles your yard’s most-needed treatments into one convenient, no-fuss plan, plus know your valuable evergreen shrubs are happy and healthy.
Got a few minutes? That’s all you need to get started. Just fill out the form on this page, call us at (208) 656-9131 or read more about our services. Then you can kick back and relax in your healthy, thriving yard.
