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When you’re searching for a landscape tree to fill a space quickly, evergreens have plenty to offer. They generate privacy as single plantings and many can be pruned to form screens and borders. They maintain color and interest year-round and serve as shelter and food for birds and wildlife. Many needled evergreens produce cones. Broadleaf types produce flowers and berries.
Evergreens with the most height at maturity are often the fastest-growing. Some shorter species are available and can be grown as shrub hedges or small trees. The many evergreen species include slow-growing dwarf cultivars, so once you decide on a type of tree, remember to choose the one with a rapid growth habit. An evergreen, or any plant, can be considered fast-growing if it grows 25 inches or more per year.
Here are 18 evergreens that grow quickly to complete your landscape with privacy and appeal.
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01
of 18Leyland Cypress
Leyland cypress is a popular versatile, coniferous evergreen with reddish brown bark, flattened sprays of gray-green foliage, and dark brown cones. It has a broadly rounded, pyramidal shape tapering to a point at the crown. Trees can be grown to full height with some shaping or pruned to smaller specimen trees or hedges. Leyland cypress grows 20 to 30 feet tall in the first ten years.
- Name: Leyland Cypress (Cuprocyparis leylandii)
- Hardiness Zone: 6 to 10
- Mature Height: 60 to 70 feet
- Growth Rate: 3 to 4 feet per year
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02
of 18Eastern White Pine
Eastern white pine is a majestic tree with height and spread for an excellent windbreak. The tree grows into an attractive rounded, pyramidal shape with long, soft, blue-green needles. Little pruning is needed except for early shaping. A 2-foot-tall sapling grows to 12 feet in five years. Eastern white pine does not tolerate pollution and mature trees spread up to 40 feet.
- Name: Eastern White Pine (Pinus strobus)
- Hardiness Zone: 3 to 8
- Mature Height: 50 to 80 feet
- Growth Rate: 2+ feet per year
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03
of 18Thuja Green Giant
Thuja green giant is one of the fastest growing evergreens with a dense, narrow growth habit easily employed as a screen or barrier. It features brown, shaggy bark with fan-like sprays of rich green foliage that darken in winter. Mature trees can reach 50 feet in height with a 5-foot spread in 10 years. This tree is toxic to livestock.
- Name: Thuja Green Giant (Thuja standishii x plicata ‘Green Giant’)
- Hardiness Zone: 5 to 8
- Mature Height: 40 to 60 feet
- Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
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04
of 18Monterey Pine
A tall, straight trunk and narrow pyramidal shape recommend Monterey pine for the home landscape. This tree grows well in dry conditions and features long, dark green needles and brown seed cones. It soars to about 53 feet in 15 years. Cultivated for lumber around the world, Monterey pine is considered rare and endangered in native environments in Mexico and parts of central California.
- Name: Monterey Pine (Pinus radiata)
- Hardiness Zone: 7 to 10
- Mature Height: 45 to 190 feet
- Growth Rate: 3 to 6 feet per year
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05
of 18Norway Spruce
Norway spruce is an iconic coniferous evergreen well known as a popular Christmas tree variety. Large 4- to 6-inch brown cones dangle from weeping horizontal branches. This tree features gray to brown scaly bark and stiff, dense, dark green needles ideal for lights and ornaments. A 2-foot-tall sapling can grow up to 10 feet in the first five years.
- Name: Norway Spruce (Picea abies)
- Hardiness Zone: 2 to 7
- Mature Height: 50 to 75 feet
- Growth Rate: 3 feet per year
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06
of 18Italian Cypress
Italian cypress brings a touch of elegance to any landscape. Its tall, narrow cylindrical shape is easily identified as a decorative element in gardens worldwide. This Mediterranean native features sprays of dark gray-green needles on short, upright branches and produces round, brown to copper colored cones. Italian cypress grows 35 to 40 feet tall in 10 years but can be pruned to maintain less height.
- Name: Italian Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens)
- Hardiness Zone: 7 to 10
- Mature Height: 50 feet
- Growth Rate: Up to 3 feet per year
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07
of 18Nellie Stevens Holly
Nellie Stevens holly is often grown as a shrub hedge but is just as attractive pruned into a small tree. This is one of a handful of broadleaf evergreens that grows rapidly at 3 feet per year. This holly features glossy, dark green leaves and red berries. Nelly Stevens holly is salt tolerant and a good choice for coastal landscapes. Berries are toxic to people and animals.
- Name: Nelly Stevens Holly (lIex x ‘Nellie R. Stevens’)
- Hardiness Zone: 6 to 9
- Mature Height: 15 to 30 feet
- Growth Rate: 3 feet per year
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08
of 18Western Red Cedar
Native to the Pacific Northwest, western red cedar has a narrow to broad pyramidal shape with slightly curving branches giving it a graceful appearance. Fragrant green foliage bears a distinct white butterfly marking on the undersides of leaves. Western red cedar produces small, upright, brown to copper colored cones in autumn. It reaches heights of more than 12 feet in 10 years.
- Name: Western Red Cedar (Thuja plicata)
- Hardiness Zone: 5 to 7
- Mature Height: 50 to 70 feet
- Growth Rate: 2 feet per year
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09
of 18Japanese Black Pine
Japanese black pine is valued as a quirky specimen tree with a thick twisting trunk and dark green foliage that emerges white as new growth. Branches droop slightly and the crown is flat or slightly rounded instead of tapering to a point like other evergreens. Japanese black pine includes many cultivars including several well suited for bonsai.
- Name: Japanese Black Pine (Pinus thunbergii)
- Hardiness Zone: 5 to 8
- Mature Height: 3 to 80 feet
- Growth Rate: 2 to 3 feet per year
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10
of 18Rocky Mountain Juniper ‘Skyrocket’
Skyrocket juniper is a faster growing cultivar of the Rocky Mountain juniper. It’s rounded, conical form and moderate height give it plenty of versatility in the home landscape. Reddish brown bark sheds in thin strips and foliage ranges from silvery-blue to dark green. Waxy, blue, berry-like cones are a notable feature. This cultivar grows to 15 feet tall with a 3 foot spread in 10 years.
- Name: Rocky Mountain Juniper (Juniperus scopulorum ‘Skyrocket’)
- Hardiness Zone: 4 to 9
- Mature Height: 30 to 40 feet
- Growth Rate: 2 feet per year
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11
of 18Common Myrtle
If it’s a screening hedge you want, you can’t go wrong with common myrtle. While it can be pruned to a small specimen tree, this flowering woody evergreen is the ideal size for hedging. Fuzzy, white flowers contrast with leathery, dark green foliage and are followed by edible berries. Peeling, cinnamon colored bark adds appeal.
- Name: Common Myrtle (Myrtus communis)
- Hardiness Zone: 8 to 11
- Mature Height: 3 to 15 feet
- Growth Rate: 2+ feet per year
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12
of 18Wax Myrtle
Wax myrtle is often call Southern bayberry tree and can grow to 40 feet tall. Like common myrtle, it works well as a border or screening hedge with fragrant olive green foliage. Wax myrtle produces catkins in spring, followed by pale blue fruits in winter. Two plants, male and female are needed to produce berries. Bark ranges from light gray to nearly white.
- Name: Wax Myrtle (Morella cerifera)
- Hardiness Zone: 7 to 10
- Mature Height: 12 to 40 feet
- Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
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13
of 18Cherry Laurel
Cherry laurel is a broadleaf evergreen tree or shrub with fragrant, glossy green foliage and white flower spikes in spring. The plant is tolerant of soil type and responds well to heavy pruning making it ideal as a screening hedge. Flowers and red berries in autumn attract birds and pollinators. With good care it can be grown into a 10 foot tall hedge in four to five years. Cherry laurel is toxic to people and pets.
- Name: Cherry Laurel (Prunus laurocerasus)
- Hardiness Zone: 4 to 9
- Mature Height: 25 feet
- Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
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14
of 18Grand Fir
Grand fir tree lives up to its name in both size and appearance. A focal point in every landscape, it features smooth, gray bark, shiny dark green needles and 3-inch reddish brown cones. If you don’t have room for this towering giant, several dwarf species exist but may not grow as quickly.
- Name: Grand Fir (Abies grandis)
- Hardiness Zone: 5 to 6
- Mature Height: 100 to 250 feet tall
- Growth Rate: 4 feet per year
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15
of 18Carolina Sapphire Cypress
Carolina sapphire cypress is a tree well suited to hot, dry climates. Fragrant, lacy foliage consists of soft, blue needles on layered branches. This tree has an open habit giving it a light, airy appearance. Mature trees produce small cones with a blue, powdery coating.
- Name: Carolina Sapphire Cypress (Cupressus arizonica var. glabra ‘Carolina Sapphire’)
- Hardiness Zone: 6 to 9
- Mature Height: 30 feet
- Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
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16
of 18Taylor Juniper
Taylor juniper is a fast growing cultivar of the Eastern red cedar, popular for it slender, columnar appearance. Well suited to colder climates, it displays sprays of blue-green foliage and blue berries. This cultivar forms naturally without pruning and can be planted as a tall hedge. At 10 years, trees stand 20 feet tall and 3 feet wide at the base.
- Name: Taylor’s Juniper (Juniperus virginiana ‘Taylor’)
- Hardiness Zone: 4 to 9
- Mature Height: 15 to 20 feet
- Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
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17
of 18Chinese Holly ‘Burford’
Burford Chinese holly is a broadleaf evergreen shrub or small tree with glossy, dark olive-green foliage, small yellow-green flowers and dark red fruits. Early spring flowers attract bees but male and female plants are needed for fruiting. This plant is considered invasive in Georgia and is toxic to people and pets.
- Name: Chinese Holly (Ilex cornuta ‘Burfordii’)
- Hardiness Zone: 7 to 9
- Mature Height: 15 to 25 feet
- Growth Rate: 3 feet per year
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18
of 18American Pillar Arborvitae
A spread of just 3 to 5 feet makes American pillar arborvitae ideal as a tall privacy hedge or border. The tree features a narrow, columnar shape that fits into tight places. Glossy green foliage turns bronze-purple in autumn. Both heat and cold tolerant, American Pillar adapts to multiple uses in the landscape requiring little pruning to maintain it’s graceful appearance. This tree is toxic to livestock.
- Name: American Pillar Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis ‘American Pillar’)
- Hardiness Zone: 3 to 8
- Mature Height: 23 to 30 feet
- Growth Rate: 2+ feet per year
Learn More
Evergreens offer versatility in the home landscape. Not only are they unique specimen trees and shrubs, but they can also function as borders for both privacy and shade. Read on to learn more about evergreens, how they can be incorporated into your landscape, and all that they can offer.
- 20 Evergreen Shrubs That Are Perfect for Shade
- 10 Best Evergreens for Hedges and Privacy Screens
- 9 Flowering Evergreen Shrubs for Lovely, Long-Lasting Blooms
Read the full article here
