A fast hedge gives privacy in two or three years. The same vigour means more clipping for the rest of its life, so the best choice is usually the fastest plant whose natural height is close to the height you want. This guide covers the fastest reliable hedges for each climate, how to plant them so they close quickly, and the mistakes that leave a hedge bare at the base.
The fastest reliable hedge plants
| Plant | Growth in good conditions | Hedge height | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lilly pilly | Up to a metre a year | 2 to 5 m | The most planted hedge in the warm east. Buy a psyllid resistant cultivar. See our lilly pilly screening guide |
| Viburnum (sweet viburnum) | Up to a metre a year | 2 to 4 m | Large glossy leaves, frost hardy, good in every capital |
| Pittosporum | Up to a metre a year | 2 to 4 m | Fine foliage for cool and temperate gardens; shorter lived than the others |
| Photinia Red Robin | 50 cm to a metre a year | 2 to 3 m | Red new growth after each trim; takes frost |
| Murraya | About 50 cm a year | 1.5 to 3 m | Scented white flowers, warm climates. Our mock orange care guide covers it |
| Leighton Green conifer | A metre or more a year | 3 to 8 m | The fastest dense hedge for cool climates. Must be trimmed every year |
| Clumping bamboo | Full height in two to three years | 3 to 6 m | The fastest screen in warm gardens. Our guide to bamboo in the garden covers the choices |
| Westringia | About 50 cm a year | 1 to 2 m | The quickest low hedge for coast, wind and poor soil |
All of them are in our hedging plants range, and the best hedging plants collection narrows it to the most reliable. If you need height faster than a shrub hedge can give, our guide to the best fast growing screening trees for privacy covers the tree sized alternatives.
Fast hedging by Australian climate
Growth rate depends on climate. A hedge that closes in two years in Brisbane takes four in Canberra, so choose for where you garden.
| Location | Fastest reliable hedges |
|---|---|
| Brisbane, Gold and Sunshine Coasts | Lilly pilly, murraya, viburnum, clumping bamboo |
| Sydney and coastal NSW | Lilly pilly, viburnum, murraya, pittosporum |
| Melbourne and Canberra | Viburnum, pittosporum, photinia, Teddy Bear magnolia |
| Adelaide | Pittosporum, viburnum, westringia, olive |
| Perth | Lilly pilly with irrigation, viburnum, westringia |
| Coastal and exposed | Westringia, coast banksia, tuckeroo |
| Frost prone inland | Photinia, pittosporum, viburnum, conifers |
Fast is not free
The fastest hedging plants keep growing. That means clipping two or three times a year for as long as the hedge stands, and a large plant if you ever stop. A hedge held well below its natural height also goes woody and thins at the base. Choosing a cultivar whose natural mature height is close to the screen height you want costs one extra season of waiting and saves two decades of work.
If you want the structure without the frequent trim, westringia, dwarf lilly pilly forms, murraya and Japanese box hold a tidy shape with two trims a year. Sasanqua camellias make a slower flowering hedge. Our roundup of alternative hedging plants is the place to look if the usual choices do not suit your conditions.
Psyllid: the choice that decides how a lilly pilly hedge looks in ten years
If you are planting lilly pilly, buy a named psyllid resistant cultivar such as Resilience. Unnamed seedling lilly pillies are cheap because they are susceptible, and the pimpled damage psyllids leave on a leaf is permanent. A clipped hedge is hit hardest, because clipping keeps producing the soft new growth the insect attacks.
Getting it to close quickly
- Prepare the whole trench, not single holes. A row of holes in clay is a row of bathtubs.
- Space plants 80 cm to a metre apart for most hedging species. Closer wastes plants without closing faster.
- Plant 60 cm clear of the fence so you can trim both sides.
- Water deeply through the first two summers. This decides the speed more than anything else, and it is the step most often skimped.
- Mulch the whole strip to keep the roots cool and the weeds out.
- Feed in early spring and midsummer. A clipped hedge regrows constantly and is hungrier than a single shrub.
- Tip prune from the first year to force branching low down. Do not wait for full height.
For the routine from trench to first trim, see our guide on how to create a great hedge and keep it looking sharp.
The pruning rule that matters most
Keep the base wider than the top. Cut the sides on a slight slope so the hedge is widest at ground level and light reaches the lower leaves. A hedge clipped with vertical sides shades its own base; that growth thins and dies, and the hedge ends up green from the waist up and bare below, which is where the screening was wanted. One exception to hard cutting: conifers will not reshoot from bare old wood, so trim them lightly and often, always within the green growth.
Clumping bamboo only
Bamboo is the fastest screen available in warm gardens, but plant only clumping kinds. Running bamboo travels under paving and fences into neighbouring properties and is very hard to remove. Check the label; do not assume.
Check the rules before you plant
Councils differ on hedge heights and setbacks, and most states have laws on hedges that block a neighbour's light or view. Confirm what applies to your street before planting a boundary. Privet, once the standard fast hedge, is now a weed of bushland across much of eastern Australia and is best avoided.
Common questions
What is the fastest growing hedge in Australia?
Clumping bamboo in warm gardens and Leighton Green conifer in cool ones. Among the usual hedge shrubs, lilly pilly, viburnum and pittosporum can each add up to a metre a year in good conditions.
How far apart should I plant a fast hedge?
80 cm to a metre apart for most species, and 60 cm clear of the fence.
How long does a hedge take to give privacy?
Two to three years from small plants in a warm climate with regular water, and three to four in a cool one. Advanced plants shorten that.
Why is my hedge bare at the bottom?
The top has been allowed to grow wider than the base and has shaded it out. Trim so the hedge is widest at ground level.
Ready to plant?
Our hedging stock comes in advanced sizes, so a new boundary can read as a screen from the first season. Browse our privacy and screening range to compare species, mature heights and current availability.
If you are in South East Queensland or on the coast down to Sydney and would rather have the hedge planted for you, The Hedge Guys supply advanced lilly pilly hedging in three heights, supply only or supplied and installed, and their hedge spacing guide works out plant numbers for a fence run.
For the view from the street, our front yard kerb appeal planting guide works through hedges, feature trees and groundcovers that make a house look finished from the footpath.
