Tall Privacy Hedge on East Side of Lot

(Question)

I have a plaza building behind my lot that I would like to block the view. The hedge would be planted along the East side of my property fence so that would be Western exposure. Does that mean I am limited to Hill’s Yew, Hick’s Yew or Hemlock? Would Green Giant Cedars work? Ideally, I would like it to be 25′ tall and a tree that would grow fairly quickly. The soil is loam and I have an irrigation system. What would you recommend? Thank you.

(Answer)

Thank you for contacting Toronto Master Gardeners

There are alternatives to growing the evergreens you have mentioned. Our website has information for various alternatives. By the photo it looks like you have sun from noon overhead to afternoon sun which is more than 4 hours of sunlight and more during the summer. Having a good loam soil and access to water  expands the choice of coverage. Most importantly, check out our information on planting new trees and shrubs: Planting Evergreens;Planting Trees

This website provides a list of evergreens for Colorado, which is similar to our growing zone. Scroll down to view the list that provides the name, full growth size, growing conditions required Evergreen Trees Shrubs

‘Green Giant’ cedar or Thuja ‘Green Giant’ is a great choice if you are considering planting as they are fast growing. A reminder that all new plantings, especially cedars, require adequate watering the first year of planting or until well established. Thuja ‘Green Giant’

However, some deciduous options are available which are suitable for hedging, such as two red maples that have a columnar form – Acer rubrum ‘Red Rocket’ and ‘Armstrong’. There is also Dawyck purple beech (Fagus sylvatica ‘Dawyck Purple’) or a columnar hornbeam (Carpinus betulus ‘Columnaris’), both of which have the advantage of holding leaves on the trees over winter.
Other suggestions:
I came across a couple of different answers on ASK that suggest deciduous trees suitable for hedging which you could reference; however, they are not considered fast growing.

Happy Gardening

02/05/22