which arborvitae grows the fastest?
How fast do Arborvitae grow? When conditions are favorable, the average arborvitae growth rate is incredible at one to two feet each year.
Green Arborvitae is a beautiful plant that is fascinating to find because it is difficult to find the proper one.
It can be really frustrating to find the ideal home plant, but at least with house plants, you can quickly replace them.
The Emerald Green Arborvitae, which is famed for its capacity to tolerate practically everything, is a perfect choice for that, keep reading to find out how fast they grow and even more.
Each year, this Emerald Arborvitae matures to one to two feet, if it is given the ideal weather in which it will thrive. While the environment does not alter significantly, the amount of water a tree receives can affect its development pace.
These trees are hardy, deer resistant, and won’t die in sub-optimal climates, however, they grow at different rates. Every year, the Green Giant grows a few feet, occasionally up to five feet in a single year.
Landscaping arborvitae can grow anywhere between two and 70 feet tall, depending on the species. Their spread can range from 1.5 to 20 feet for this extensive height range. The following arborvitae species make up this growth span:
Like the Emerald Thuja Arborvitae, the Green Giant is a Thuja green giant tree, although they do seem relatively similar when they’re young. However, the Giant Greeb Arborvitae grows faster at two times than that of the Emerald Thuja, in addition to having twice the mass.
This growing evergreen is in the same family, so if you like the emerald green thuja tree but want something more prominent, faster, and larger growing, then the Green Giant is the way to go.
In terms of trees, the Arborvitae has a lot going for it. The tree is low-maintenance and requires little to no care. It’s also green all year and quite resistant to weather fluctuations.
It’s also resistant to various illnesses and insects that ordinarily kill other plants.
What exactly is it bad for? Perhaps extra-large yards would be too much for a 10-15-foot tree to handle. Aside from that, if you like how it looks, you can use it.
The Emerald Green Arborvitae requires enough space to grow, but not so much that the “wall” is no longer visible. Planting Emerald Green Arborvitae trees five to six feet apart is good, having in mind that it grows nearly 12 inches a year, which is almost one foot!
Because Green Giant Arborvitae can grow up to twenty feet wide, planting them between 10-15 feet is a better alternative. On the other hand, Emerald Greens only grow a few feet wide; thus, six feet is enough room for both trees to touch.
It’s not difficult to look after your Arborvitae. Most individuals will plant the trees and then forget about them, especially if their area gets much rain. However, it is understandable if you want the best for your tree, especially if you want it to thrive. It’s fantastic to be able to leave a plant without thinking about it!
You’ll need to water the Arborvitae twice a week when it’s a baby. However, this is common for any tree. You may water it once a week after that. Some people, on the other hand, never water their Emerald Greens.
This is okay if the leaves do not turn brown from overwatering or the tree does not develop root rot. So stay on the lookout for these two things, and you should be fine.
Apart from having their bed of soil in general, these trees only worry about one thing when it comes to earth. That is the pH scale. They can survive in a range of pH levels; however, they have a preferred range.
pH levels between 6 to 8 are ideal for most Thujas. You can go lower or higher, but you might have a problem if you go too far in one direction or the other. This, however, is a rare occurrence.
The Arborvitae do not require fertilizer to grow if you despise feeding trees. This isn’t to say you shouldn’t feed it; it means you don’t have to, it will fend for itself and grow tall.
If you want to feed it, you can use a simple fertilizer. The thuja will benefit from anything that works for small to medium-sized evergreen trees. It does not have any food preferences. It doesn’t need to eat, after all!
Arborvitae thrives in full sun or partial shade, nonetheless, the only thing they can’t do is grow in direct sunlight all day. It is important to note that they are not indoor trees and require half-day exposure to sunlight.
It’s wise to time the region’s amount of sunlight each day while planting your tree. Go for a week before planting your tree to figure out how much sun the area receives on average, the reason why is to see your Arborvitae grow and get the right amount of sun.
Humidity is not a friend of Arborvitae. Though the tree can still grow, if the climate is too humid, the tree may develop a fungus that will impact the appearance and lifespan of the Arborvitae, which will damage its ideal yearly growth rate.
However, this is primarily a concern while the tree is young, so planting it in the fall is recommended because they thrive in cold conditions, even when temperatures are 40 degrees below zero.
Pruning is not required for Arborvitae. You can, however, trim them in the spring to give them a thicker, more lush, and healthy coat. The only pruning you need to do is to remove sick branches, no matter what.
This protects the remainder of the tree from infection by the branches. However, this is unusual. Otherwise, aside from personal preference, you shouldn’t have to worry about pruning because that is all there is.
There are different varieties of Arborvitae that grow at different rates, however, here’s what we covered in the article:
With all this knowledge in hand, it’s time for you to start planting these breathtaking and majestic trees to elevate your lawns.
The biggest downside to green screens is waiting for the trees to grow and fill in the gaps. This is why picking fast growing trees is so important when planning your privacy hedge.
Shop Thuja Green Giant Arborvitae
Growing Zones: 5 to 9
Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
Mature Height: 40-60 feet
Mature Width: 10-15 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 5-10 feet
The Green Giant Arborvitae is the most popular selling and fastest growing privacy evergreen. With disease and pest resistance and amazingly fast growth rates that can even exceed 5 feet per year you can’t go wrong with this hardy tree.
Shop Leyland Cypress
Growing Zones: 6 to 10
Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
Mature Height: 40-60 feet
Mature Width: 15 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 5-10 feet
The Leyland Cypress is an excellent choice for privacy. It has darker foliage than the Green Giant and is stiffer in form. Enjoy true privacy within 2 or 3 years with this heat tolerant privacy tree.
Shop Wax Myrtle
Growing Zones: 7 to 10
Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
Mature Height: 15-20 feet
Mature Width: 6-10 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 4-6 feet
Wax Myrtles are very fast growing shrub trees that give you privacy within 2 years. These privacy trees tolerate heavy pruning so you can sculpt them to just the right height and shape to suit your hedge needs. Wax Myrtles are a tough southern staple.
Shop Cryptomeria Radicans
Growing Zones: 5 to 9
Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
Mature Height: 30-40 feet
Mature Width: 15-20 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 8-10 feet
This hardy privacy tree offers fragrant, feathery foliage. The Cryptomeria Radicans is low maintenance, deer resistant, versatile, and extremely adaptable.
Shop Sapphire Cypress
Growing Zones: 5 to 9
Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
Mature Height: 20-30 feet
Mature Width: 15 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 7-8 feet
The Blue Sapphire Cypress or Carolina Cypress is extremely heat and drought tolerant and deer resistant. This privacy tree offers a unique look, lovely scent, and great color!
Shop Nellie Stevens Holly
Growing Zones: 5 to 9
Growth Rate: 2 to 3 feet per year
Mature Height: 20 -30 feet
Mature Width: 8-10 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 5 feet
Nellie Stevens Hollies have dark green foliage and red berries. They are hardy, deer resistant, and very low maintenance.
Green Giant ArborvitaeThuja standishii x plicata 'Green Giant' The green giant arborvitae is a large, vigorous, fast-growing evergreen—shooting up by as much as 3 feet per year until maturity.
In general, different arborvitae shrubs score pretty well on one or more of these criteria, but no type is exceptional on all three counts. If your heart is set on arborvitae for a specific application, you can likely find a plant that will suit your needs, but you may need to compromise, including the possibility of going over your budget for landscaping.
Arborvitae is generally intolerant of drought, but North Pole arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis Art Boe) displays unexpectedly good drought-tolerance in the Northeast and other northern climates in the United States. It can reach 10 to 15 feet tall and 5 to 7 feet wide. Overall, its growth rate is average.
Techny (Thuja occidentalis Techny) is another arborvitae with a moderate growth rate that surprises with its drought tolerance. It reaches 10 to 15 feet tall and 6 to 10 feet wide.
Generally, arborvitae is not an exceptionally fast-growing shrub. Green Giant (T. plicata x T. standishii) is an exception, being one of the faster-growing arborvitaes, but its growth is much more than most home gardeners are looking for. Green Giant shrubs can climb to a towering height of 40 to 60 feet at maturity, and 12 to 18 feet wide. Furthermore, their growth can be as fast as 5 feet per year.
Green Giant is not the only biggie in this family. An even taller species, the Western Red Cedar (T. plicata), can quickly grow to 50 to 70 feet tall and 15 to 25 feet wide, earning it the common name "giant arborvitae." Other cultivars that can rightly be called giants are the fast-growing Zebrina, which grows 30 to 50 feet tall and is 8 to 12 feet wide, and Hetz Wintergreen, a fast-growing variety that tops out at 30 feet tall and 10 feet wide.
Arborvitae generally does not grow very fast (Green Giant and a few others notwithstanding) so if you're hoping to grow a tall hedge or privacy screen as quickly as possible, you may have to compromise on cost. One option is to buy established Emerald Green arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis Smaragd) plants, which can reach 12 to 14 feet tall and 3 to 4 feet wide at maturity. But because they are already tall, you will be paying dearly for them.
Not everybody wants a tall, narrow kind of arborvitae and/or a plant with a fast growth rate. Some landscaping situations call for a plant that is more compact and with a growth rate that is slow to moderate. Luckily, there are types of arborvitae that can fit the bill. This is especially true of the various kinds of "globe arborvitae" (so named for their spherical shape or hassock shape), which include:
Not all types of arborvitae are a plain, old green color, either. T. occidentalis Golden Globe bucks the trend, having a round shape and displaying foliage of a light golden color. It grows to be 2 to 4 feet tall by 2 to 4 feet wide. There is even a weeping kind, T. occidentalis Pendula. And there are other types of golden arborvitae:
The biggest downside to green screens is waiting for the trees to grow and fill in the gaps. This is why picking fast growing trees is so important when planning your privacy hedge.
Shop Thuja Green Giant Arborvitae
Growing Zones: 5 to 9
Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
Mature Height: 40-60 feet
Mature Width: 10-15 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 5-10 feet
The Green Giant Arborvitae is the most popular selling and fastest growing privacy evergreen. With disease and pest resistance and amazingly fast growth rates that can even exceed 5 feet per year you can’t go wrong with this hardy tree.
Shop Leyland Cypress
Growing Zones: 6 to 10
Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
Mature Height: 40-60 feet
Mature Width: 15 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 5-10 feet
The Leyland Cypress is an excellent choice for privacy. It has darker foliage than the Green Giant and is stiffer in form. Enjoy true privacy within 2 or 3 years with this heat tolerant privacy tree.
Shop Wax Myrtle
Growing Zones: 7 to 10
Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
Mature Height: 15-20 feet
Mature Width: 6-10 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 4-6 feet
Wax Myrtles are very fast growing shrub trees that give you privacy within 2 years. These privacy trees tolerate heavy pruning so you can sculpt them to just the right height and shape to suit your hedge needs. Wax Myrtles are a tough southern staple.
Shop Cryptomeria Radicans
Growing Zones: 5 to 9
Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
Mature Height: 30-40 feet
Mature Width: 15-20 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 8-10 feet
This hardy privacy tree offers fragrant, feathery foliage. The Cryptomeria Radicans is low maintenance, deer resistant, versatile, and extremely adaptable.
Shop Sapphire Cypress
Growing Zones: 5 to 9
Growth Rate: 3 to 5 feet per year
Mature Height: 20-30 feet
Mature Width: 15 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 7-8 feet
The Blue Sapphire Cypress or Carolina Cypress is extremely heat and drought tolerant and deer resistant. This privacy tree offers a unique look, lovely scent, and great color!
Shop Nellie Stevens Holly
Growing Zones: 5 to 9
Growth Rate: 2 to 3 feet per year
Mature Height: 20 -30 feet
Mature Width: 8-10 feet
Privacy Screen Spacing: 5 feet
Nellie Stevens Hollies have dark green foliage and red berries. They are hardy, deer resistant, and very low maintenance.
If you are desperate for the quickest possible privacy, pick out larger trees and stagger your trees by planting 2 rows. For something like the Thuja Green Giant or Leyland Cypress plan for about 4-5 feet between trees on the diagonal. This will leave you with about 8 feet of space between each tree within the rows and the rows will be approximately 3 feet apart. Staggered screens are actually quite attractive and lush and are best for sound and wind blocking.
Q: We just bought a house in a brand new development so our yard is pretty bare. We’d like to plant some fast-growing evergreen trees for year-round color as well as privacy. Which evergreens will give us quick cover and also boost our curb appeal?
A: Trees and shrubs that retain their foliage year-round are great for adding a natural design element to your yard and serve as focal point in your landscape. And, as you’re well aware, the staying power of their leaves or needles also helps to create a dense, beautiful barrier between houses and shield your home from the street.
These fast-growing evergreen trees can transform your yard from sparse to spectacular in record time! However, since not all species thrive in all regions of the country, be sure to consult the United States Department of Agriculture’s Plant Hardiness Zone map to help determine which of the seven picks would do best in your neck of the woods.
This evergreen (T. plicata x T. standishii) grows up to 3 feet per year, topping out at 35 to 40 feet high with a base spread of 12 to 15 feet. Its heavy branches and textured, supple green foliage lend a soft natural look to the landscape, and once established, Thuja Green Giant is drought tolerant and resists insect infestations. It thrives in virtually all soil types, even heavy clay, and grows best in full sun to partial shade in zones 5 through 9.
For a privacy fence, plant small trees 6 feet apart that will quickly grow to form a compact hedge. Thuja Green Giant is strong enough to use as a windscreen in rural areas and will withstand heavy ice without branch breakage.
With its soft feathery texture, rich bluish-green color, and growth rate of 3 to 4 feet per year, it’s no wonder the Leyland Cypress (x Cupressocyparis leylandii) is a garden center bestseller. This hybrid cypress can reach a mature height of 70 feet, and if planted as a single specimen tree will develop a base spread of 20 feet at maturity. For a dense privacy screen, plant small nursery trees 8 feet apart.
Leyland Cypress prefers a location where it will get 6 hours or more of direct sunlight per day. It’s not fussy otherwise, tolerating most types of soil, including sandy and heavy clay, and once established, it’s drought tolerant, actually preferring slightly dry soil (faring well in zones 6 through 10). If a formal hedge is desired, Leyland Cypress can be pruned annually without damage to the tree.
A pyramidal shrub that reaches a mature height of 25 feet, the Nellie Stevens Holly (Ilex x ‘Nellie R. Stevens’) is a broadleaf evergreen that grows 2 to 3 feet per year and can be easily trimmed to maintain a formal box hedge. Its deep-green, glossy year-round foliage develops vivid red berries in late fall that provide striking contrast and attract overwintering birds and wildlife.
For a privacy screen, plant Nellie Stevens Holly 5 to 6 feet apart; it will quickly fill in to form a natural fence prickly enough to deter unwanted visitors. This holly grows the fastest in slightly acidic, well-drained soil, in a location getting a minimum of 6 hours of direct sunlight daily. Nellie Stevens is a vigorous grower in zones 7 through 9, but will also grow in zone 6, at a slightly slower rate of 1 to 2 feet per year.
For a slender, elegant addition to your landscape that can grow as much as 3 feet per year, consider Italian Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens). This tall columnar tree can reach a mature height of 40 to 60 feet, but unlike some evergreens, it won’t spread substantially at the base. It reaches a width of only 4 to 5 feet at maturity, making it a good choice for small yards.
Italian Cypress is often selected as a standout specimen tree, or used as an accent to flank entrances; it also makes a stunning narrow border between houses. Italian Cypress retains its bluish-green hue all year long and never needs trimming to maintain its columnar shape. While it grows well in most soils and is drought resistant, unlike evergreens that thrive in northern climes, it does best in warmer zones, 7B through 11.
If you fancy a tall columnar tree but live too far north to grow Italian Cypress, the Taylor Juniper (Juniperus virginiana) is a smart choice. This hybrid juniper, discovered in Taylor, Nebraska, is as cold-hardy as other junipers, thriving in zones 3 through 9, and reaches a statuesque vertical height of up to 30 feet. With a base spread of only 3 to 5 feet, it perfectly suits small areas where quick growth (as much as 3 feet per year) is desired. Because it grows upward without leaning outward, it’s ideal for foundation planting. Or planted 3 feet apart, it will form a tall narrow privacy screen. The Taylor Juniper, with its semi-soft, bluish-green foliage, likes full sun, tolerates drought, and thrives in most soil types.
One of the fastest-growing evergreen trees, the Murray Cypress (Cupressocyparis x leylandi ‘Murray’) can spurt up to 4 feet in a single year until it reaches a mature height of 30 to 40 feet and a base width of 10 feet. Planted 5 feet apart, these fast-growing evergreen trees will quickly form a privacy fence even more quickly than its relative the Leyland Cypress.
A very hardy tree that grows well in zones 6 through 10, this cypress takes harsh winter winds and scorching summer heat in stride, offering shade and medium-green color all year long. Plus, the low-maintenance Murray Cypress thrives in poor soils. It can be left to grow naturally, which results in a slightly shaggy look, or its foliage can be trimmed for more formal appeal.
