Though some plants are termed “evergreen”, that doesn’t mean they never lose their needles. Evergreens go through a natural cycle of dropping and replacing old foliage just as deciduous plants do. They just do it on a slightly different schedule. While a maple tree will only keep its leaves for a single growing season, a pine tree may hold onto its needles for two seasons. Eventually, needles become old and worn and drop from the tree naturally. The oldest needles are those that are closest to the trunk along a branch.