Viburnum ‘Thin Fence’

Viburnum 'Thin Fence' (Viburnum odoratissimum 'Thin Fence') is the screening plant for a boundary with no room to spare. It grows to about 4m tall but holds to roughly 1.2m wide, so it covers a fence line without crowding the path you walk along. Planted 60cm apart it closes into a slim green wall over two to three seasons, and it takes frost, salt wind and heat better than most fast screeners.

Why you'll love it

• Height without the width. About 4m of cover on a 1.2m footprint, a fraction of the spread of a standard sweet viburnum.
• Fast to close. A quick grower, so a bare fence starts reading as green in the first full season rather than the third.
• Scented white flowers. Small white clusters with a sweet perfume, followed by fruit that brings birds in.
• Suits most of the country. Frost hardy, heat, humidity and salt tolerant, so subtropical, warm temperate, cool temperate and Mediterranean gardens all work.
• Low maintenance. Two trims a year hold the shape, and it reshoots from old wood, so a neglected run comes back.

Where it works best

Narrow boundaries and side gardens. Plant 60cm apart in a single row. The close spacing is deliberate: a slim plant needs more stems per metre than a wide hedge, or the row reads striped rather than solid.

Courtyards and balconies. In a large container it makes a green column against a blank wall, or a privacy panel between units, without taking the floor space a normal shrub needs.

Borders and edging. Trimmed to 1.5m or 2m it divides a lawn from a service area or screens bins, and still leaves the bed usable in front of it.

Growing Viburnum 'Thin Fence' in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun builds the densest column; part shade works but stays looser. It is frost hardy once established, which brings cool temperate and Mediterranean gardens into range alongside subtropical and warm temperate ones.

Soil. Any reasonable garden soil that drains. On heavy clay, plant along a raised mound and work compost through the whole run rather than into individual holes. Mulch 75mm deep, clear of the stems.

Water and feed. Deep soak twice a week through the first summer, then taper back. A controlled release fertiliser in early spring and late summer keeps the colour dark.

Pruning. Tip prune from planting, then trim after the spring flush and again in late summer. Hand shears beat a powered trimmer, because sliced leaves brown along the cut edge.

What to expect when it arrives

It is supplied as tube stock, the size most people underestimate. Tubes are young single stemmed plants with a well developed root system and little top growth, and for a long boundary they are the sensible buy: cheaper per metre, faster to settle in than an advanced plant, and easy to space accurately. Plan on tip pruning through the first year to build low branching.

Plants are packed to travel upright and delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95 and a minimum order of $300 before delivery. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost. Allow a quiet fortnight, then new growth within four to six weeks. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Compare hedging and screening plants
• How to plant a hedge and keep it sharp
• Sweet Viburnum, the wider parent variety
• Browse scented plants for the garden

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it?

60cm apart in a single row. Because the plant is narrow, tight spacing is what gives a solid screen, and at that distance the canopies knit without the plants fighting for water.

How wide will it really get?

About 1.2m left alone, and a light side trim each year holds it nearer 1m. This is a genuinely slim selection, not a standard viburnum marketed as narrow.

Is it a problem around pets?

The fruit is not edible and can upset a dog that chews on garden plants, so we would not choose it where that is a habit. The foliage is not the issue, the berries are.