What is an evergreen tree?

acacia saligna

Trees are those woody plants that grow to heights of more than five meters. Depending on where they have evolved, they may drop the leaves at some time of the year in order to survive, or on the contrary they may remain evergreen. The latter are known as evergreen trees.

But Do we know what they are exactly? The truth is that often, especially when you start in the world of gardening, it is very common to think that they are plants that have leaves all year round and that they never throw them away, when the reality is a little different 🙂.

Perennial is a word that can be misleading. Its meaning is "lasting forever or a long time." In the subject at hand, its most accurate meaning would be that of »lasts a long time». Trees, and in fact all evergreen plants, when encountering conditions of temperatures, nutrients and water that, in most cases, are optimal, do not need to drop their leaves at a specific time of year. But do it, they do.

They have to. The leaves, as well as the branches, and even the roots, over time age. It is the law of life. From the first moment they are formed, cells grow, multiply and finally die. If these leaves did not fall, they would end up rotting on the plant itself, putting it in danger.

jacaranda mimosifolia

Can it be the case that an evergreen tree behaves like deciduous or semi-deciduous? The truth is that yes. In fact, this is what happens when you cultivate for example a jacaranda mimosifolia or Delonix direction (flamboyant) in an area where temperatures drop below 0ºC during winters. When the climate is too cold, or too warm, these plants, even if they are evergreen, drop the leaves because they are too weak to be able to withstand the new conditions that have been presented to them.

So what is the difference between evergreen trees and deciduous trees? The former can drop the leaves throughout the year or choose to renew them every X years, but the latter are peeled in a certain season (summer or winter).

Has it been of interest to you?