Best Fast-Growing Hedges: Compare Your Options
A fast-growing hedge can provide privacy, shelter and a green boundary sooner than a slower-growing alternative. The best choice depends on how quickly you need screening, how much space you have and how often you are prepared to trim it.
Leylandii is among the quickest options, but it can become difficult to manage if left untrimmed. Cherry Laurel, Western Red Cedar and Privet are other options to compare. Growth varies with the plant’s starting size, soil, light, water and aftercare, so no species can guarantee the same rate in every garden.
Browse our hedging plants or compare the options below.
What makes a hedge fast-growing?
“Fast-growing” describes a plant’s potential in suitable conditions. A newly planted hedge still needs time to establish, and growth can be slower in poor soil, deep shade, dry ground or exposed positions.
Think about the hedge’s eventual height and width as well as its growth rate. A vigorous hedge needs regular trimming to keep it within bounds. The RHS recommends trimming established Leylandii two or three times during the growing season; Cherry Laurel and Privet also need regular attention when kept as formal hedges.
Fast-growing hedges compared
Leylandii: very fast, with a high trimming commitment
Leylandii is a vigorous evergreen conifer that can create a tall screen quickly. It suits larger boundaries where you can keep up with maintenance. Trim it regularly: cutting back into old, bare growth can leave brown patches that may not regrow.
Cherry Laurel: broad evergreen screening
Cherry Laurel has large, glossy leaves and can form a dense evergreen screen. It is a good option where you want broad-leaved cover, but allow enough room for its mature width and plan for regular trimming.
Western Red Cedar: dense evergreen cover
Shop Western Red Cedar hedging
Western Red Cedar (Thuja plicata) provides year-round foliage and can be clipped into a hedge or allowed to form a taller screen. Check the available width and maintenance requirements against the space you have.
Green Privet: adaptable and easy to clip
Green Privet is a fast-growing option for a neat, clipped boundary. It is often semi-evergreen, so it may retain some foliage in winter, with leaf loss varying according to conditions.
Portuguese Laurel: refined evergreen screening
Shop Portuguese Laurel hedging
Portuguese Laurel has smaller, darker leaves than Cherry Laurel and can make an attractive formal hedge. Choose it for its appearance and suitability to the site, rather than assuming every laurel grows at the same rate.
Choosing a hedge for your garden
For quick privacy
Start by checking the height and density of the plants available, the length of the boundary and the sightline you need to screen. A taller plant at planting can provide a quicker effect than relying on growth alone.
For a smaller garden
Avoid choosing a hedge solely because it grows quickly. Fast-growing plants can soon take up too much space. Consider how wide the hedge can be maintained and whether a more moderate-growing plant would be easier to manage.
For wildlife
A mixed or native hedge can provide flowers, fruit and shelter for wildlife, though it may not create a uniform evergreen screen. Explore our native hedging and decide whether year-round privacy or wildlife value is the priority.
For difficult conditions
Check the site before choosing: soil, drainage, light and exposure all affect establishment. See our guides to hedging for shade, hedging for clay soil and hedging for exposed sites.
How to get a hedge established
Prepare the planting area, remove competing weeds and water the new hedge thoroughly. Continue checking soil moisture during dry spells while the plants establish. The suitable planting season and aftercare depend on whether you choose bare-root, rootballed or container-grown plants.
Read our hedge planting guide before planting, and check the individual product page for available sizes and supply details.
Frequently asked questions
Which hedge grows fastest?
Leylandii is among the fastest-growing hedge plants, but it needs regular management and enough room. Its rapid growth is a benefit only if you can maintain the height and width.
Which fast-growing hedges stay evergreen?
Leylandii, Cherry Laurel and Western Red Cedar are evergreen options. Privet may retain some foliage during winter, but it is not reliably evergreen in all conditions.
Will a fast-growing hedge give instant privacy?
Not necessarily. The result depends on the size and spacing of the plants at planting, their condition and how well they establish. Choose the initial plant size as well as the species.
How often will I need to trim it?
It depends on the species and the shape you want. Vigorous formal hedges generally need more frequent trimming than informal hedges. Check the pruning advice for your chosen plant; the RHS lists different trimming schedules for species including Leylandii, Laurel and Privet.
Find the right fast-growing hedge
Compare our available hedging plants and open the product pages for current sizes and supply options. We supply hedging and offer professional planting across North West England. Contact us with your postcode, hedge length and preferred height if you would like help choosing.