Fast-Growing Privacy Trees

Speed always has a price

The quickest trees are quick because they are big, and some here are very big indeed. Moreton Bay Fig (Ficus macrophylla) is a parkland tree of 15m or more with buttressed, highly invasive roots: magnificent on acreage, wrong anywhere near a suburban house. Hills Weeping Fig hedges beautifully and densely, but its vigorous roots must stay well away from pipes, paving and pools, or the tree goes in a very large container. Always check mature size and root behaviour before you check growth rate.

For a standard suburban boundary, the mid sized natives are the smarter buy. Willow Leaf Hakea (Hakea salicifolia) is one of the fastest native screens at about 5m and takes hard pruning to stay dense at the base. Sticky Wattle weeps gracefully to 6m and clips into a tall hedge, and Elaeocarpus 'Green Dream' makes a narrow 7m by 3m column for tighter runs.

Where fast growing privacy trees work

In tropical and subtropical gardens, 'Green Dream', Cardwell Tea Tree and the figs (given room) all move quickly. In cooler southern and frost prone gardens, Willow Leaf Hakea and Sticky Wattle are both frost hardy, Western Red Cedar builds a 12m conifer wall, and Chanticleer Pear gives a narrow 10m screen with brilliant autumn colour, though it stands bare through winter. On wet or flood prone ground, White Paperbark Melaleuca thrives where most trees drown. For rural windbreaks, River She Oak is frost hardy, copes from the coast to semi arid country, and filters wind rather than blocking it.

Spacing a tree screen

• 1.5m apart. Willow Leaf Hakea, Hills Weeping Fig, 'Green Dream' and Western Red Cedar for a dense wall.
• 2m apart. Sticky Wattle as a tall clipped or informal screen.
• 3m apart. River She Oak and White Paperbark as windbreaks, Chanticleer Pear as a tall narrow line.

Planting tighter does not speed things up; it just sets the trees competing for water and light.

Care while they race up

Fast trees are hungry and thirsty while young. Water deeply twice a week for the first two summers, mulch 75mm deep, and feed in early spring with a controlled release fertiliser, using a native formulation for the wattles, hakeas and she oaks. Start formative pruning in the first year: tipping the leaders and side shoots early keeps the screen furnished to the ground, which no amount of pruning fixes later.

Common questions

How fast will these trees actually grow?

In good soil with reliable water, the quickest here put on a metre or more a year once established. Growth is slower in the first season while roots settle, and slower again in dry or exposed sites.

Are the fig trees safe near a house?

No. Screening figs are superb where there is room, but their roots seek water aggressively, so keep them well clear of pipes, paving, pools and boundaries. On a small block, choose the hakea or 'Green Dream' instead, or browse the ficus range for contained and indoor options.

What if I need privacy immediately?

Our mature ex ground stock delivers instant height rather than a two year wait. These advanced trees are freighted at cost, and everything carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Would a hedge suit better than a tree?

If 2m to 4m of height solves the problem, yes: a hedge is easier to hold at size and cheaper to maintain. Start with the hedging and screening collection and come back to trees only if you need real height.