My back property line went from bare wire fence to a solid green wall in about three years. I planted three Green Giant arborvitae and two Nellie Stevens hollies five years ago in the damp back corner by the woods edge. The fastest growing hedge for privacy is usually Green Giant arborvitae. Leyland cypress and some thick laurels run close behind.
My first try was a single arborvitae on its own, and it sat there for a season looking sad. Once the roots took hold, growth picked up fast. A fast-growing privacy hedge does not screen the view the day you plant it. You still wait a few seasons for the gaps to close. So treat the early wait as normal, not a sign you bought the wrong plant.
Here is the part that trips people up. Even the fastest growing hedge needs time, because the first year goes to roots, not height. Green Giant can put on several feet a year once it settles in, but a dense, solid screen still takes about three to five years to fill in. Speed on the tag means little until the plant is established in your soil.
Speed also depends on how you set the plant up. Good drainage and steady water through the first year make the difference between a plant that races and one that sulks. My damp back corner worried me at first, but the spot drained well enough that the roots never sat in standing water. Crowd the plants to rush the screen and you only invite disease later. Give each one room to breathe and it grows faster anyway.
Size matters too, so plan for the mature plant and not the pot you buy. Green Giant arborvitae grows close to 50 feet tall and 12 feet wide in zones 6 to 9, which is bigger than most folks expect. Leyland cypress grows just as fast, but it is canker-prone and hard to save once disease sets in. That trade-off should shape your pick. Buying a smaller pot also helps, since young plants settle in and take off quicker than big ones.
So what should you actually plant? Speed and longevity pull against each other. The fastest growing hedge in a solid single-species row carries the highest disease risk. One sick plant in a straight row of clones can take down the whole line. Mixing in tougher plants protects the screen if a pest or fungus moves through. You trade a touch of uniform looks for a row that survives a bad year.
- Green Giant arborvitae grows fast and shrugs off most problems.
- Mixing in Nellie Stevens holly adds backup if one species fails.
- A varied row keeps its screen even when one plant struggles.
- Leyland cypress grows fast but canker can kill it outright.
- A solid row of one clone spreads disease plant to plant.
- Losing one matched plant leaves a gap that stands out.
The risk is not just on paper. Arborvitae draws bagworms, and a heavy run of them can strip a plant fast if you miss the early signs. Leyland cypress canker spreads in wet spring weather and has no real cure once it takes hold. A mixed row gives a pest fewer matching targets in a line, so the trouble slows down instead of racing fence to fence.
My own row proves the point in a small way. The hollies held steady through a wet spring that stressed the arborvitae, so the wall never opened up. Plant a quick privacy screen if you need cover soon, but spread your bets across two or three species. You get the speed you want and a hedge that holds its line for decades, not just a few good seasons.
Read the full article: Privacy Hedge Plants: A Complete Guide
