Need privacy? Want low-maintenance landscaping? Love helping the environment? Craving the look of a formal English garden?
Say hello to a hedge. These rows of shrubs that form a living fence or border can frame your walkway, hide an eyesore or give you a cozy private patio where you can sip your caramel latte in peace.
Let’s learn more about hedge-forming evergreens, including:
- Why Plant a Hedge?
- Which Plants Are Best for Creating Hedges in Central Florida?
- How Long Does It Take for Shrubs to Grow Into a Hedge?
- How to Speed the Growth of Your Hedge
What are the best evergreen plants for hedges in Florida? Ixora. Lorapetalum. Boxwood. Podocarpus. Clusia. Viburnum. Schilling holly.
You get the idea — there are lots of choices.
First, Why Plant a Hedge?
A hedge is a leafy green privacy fence that provides a welcome buffer from street traffic and neighbors.
Evergreen plants for hedges typically have dense foliage and small leaves, creating a perfect private space around your patio or pool.
Ugly trash bins or air conditioner units? Hide ‘em with a hedge.
Most hedges are relatively low-maintenance. Yes, hedges need watering and occasional trimming, but they need less maintenance than many other plants.
Hedges are also environmentally friendly. A green, thriving hedge does much more for the environment than a fence or a wall.
They help clean the air, absorb rain runoff and provide welcome habitat and shade for pollinators, birds and other wildlife.
Which Plants Are Best for Creating Hedges in Central Florida?
Here’s a look at a few of the best plants for a hedge in Central Florida:
Clusia
Dense foliage with thick, leathery teardrop-shaped leaves makes clusia a popular hedge-forming plant.
Clusia also grows fast — another hedge plus.
Clusia is gaining in popularity in central Florida, says Ground Source landscape designer Eric Frisch, because it’s only recently been warm enough for it to successfully grow here, thanks to climate change.
Low maintenance, clusia are resistant to drought, hot sun, and salt.
Fun fact: Clusia is sometimes called “autograph plant” because you can scratch a name or initials onto a leathery leaf and it will stay there.
Podocarpus
Podocarpus is slower growing than clusia, but they’re popular plants to create a hedge, often seen as hedges in high-end Orlando neighborhoods.
An upright evergreen with masses of long, narrow leaves that resemble flattened needles, podocarpus is often used to create tall, formal hedges.
Bonus: their roots aren’t too invasive and won’t push through patios or sidewalks, so feel free to plant a pdocarpus hedge near hardscape.
Loropetalum
Also called Chinese Fringe Flower for its delicate clusters of lightly scented blooms, this compact shrub sports colorful foliage that looks great year-round.
Many varieties have deep purple or burgundy leaves, creating an eye-catching hedge. And the pretty flowers add extra dazzle to this hedge-forming evergreen.
There are many varieties of lorapetalum, but for a more manageable hedge, choose a dwarf or compact variety.
Important pruning tip: this is a flowering plant, so prune it after flowering so you don’t snip off the bloom-producing buds.
Lorapetalum hedges do best in dappled shade, especially where summers are hot, like here in Central Florida.
Ixora
This sun-loving shrub offers clusters of tubular flowers in bright red, orange, yellow, pink, or white.
Sometimes called “flame of the woods,” this compact, densely-branching shrub works great as a hedge-forming evergreen.
It has a dense, compact growth habit, it doesn’t mind regular pruning, and its spectacular flowers add an appealing boost.
Japanese Boxwood
Probably the most classic of all the plants that form a hedge, boxwood is dense, elegant, and the Japanese variety thrives in Florida’s heat and humidity.
If you want that classic English garden look, you can’t go wrong with boxwood.
This one grows slowly so it’s best to start with larger plants.
Sweet Viburnum
A sturdy hedge with sweet-scented white blossoms, this is also one of the best hedges for privacy.
It grows fast, has dense foliage, and is happy with frequent pruning, making it perfect for creating a thick privacy screen.
Walter’s Viburnum
Another fast-growing hedge-forming plant, this pretty viburnum is a native Florida plant. It comes with a few bonuses beyond its masses of small white flowers that appear in the spring and its glossy, vanilla-scented leaves.
It attracts butterflies, and its fall fruit attracts birds and other wildlife. It’s a favorite nesting site for cardinals and other songbirds, too.
And it’s versatile.
If you like the clipped, tidy look, keep it manicured or only occasionally trimmed for a more rounded, natural look.
Choose a dwarf variety to create the best hedge.
Schefflera ‘Trinette’
Need a hedge for shade? This showy shrub is a great choice. Its stunning green and yellow leaves brighten up darker areas.
This versatile hedge-forming shrub thrives in sun or shade, and requires little care.
Its compact size makes it a good choice for a low or small hedge.
Schilling Holly
Also called dwarf yaupon holly, this fine-leafed holly is extremely easy to care for and adds a classic, formal look to the landscape.
It’s a favorite hedge-forming plant for foundations and along walkways.
It can grow to 5 feet or taller, but it’s a slow grower, so once you have it at the height you want it, it seldom needs trimming. It’s a winner for low maintenance.
Even though it’s a holly, it doesn’t produce berries. But it also doesn’t have those sharp holly spines on its leaves, so it’s a good choice for spots where people might brush up against it.
Pro tip: if you’re growing it as a hedge, a rounder, less boxy shape will let sunlight in to keep the plant nice and full at the bottom, avoiding bare stems at the base.
How Long Does It Take for Shrubs to Grow Into a Hedge?
A hedge doesn’t grow overnight. You’ll need some patience.
It typically takes three to seven years for plants that form a hedge to really fill in and reach their mature size. But, as we pointed out earlier, some hedges, like viburnum, grow faster than others.
Here’s how you can help things along:
Start with Bigger Plants
Larger hedge-forming plants will grow together faster, and established plants are also more likely to happily settle in than younger plants with smaller root systems.
Proper Pruning
Pruning encourages bushier growth. Prune in late spring after new growth has hardened off, and again in late summer or early fall.
If the hedge has flowers, though, like ixora or Lorapetalum, be sure to wait until after flowering to prune, or you’ll snip off the buds.
Feed Hungry Young Plants
Apply a general-purpose fertilizer annually in early spring to help young hedge-forming evergreens get established.
Best Plants for a Hedge? Trust Ground Source
What are the best hedge-growing plants for your landscaping dreams? Classic boxwood? Stunning Shefflera ‘Trinette?’ Bloom-covered Lorapetalum?
Can’t decide? We’d love to help, with planting and landscape design in Central Florida that makes it all easy.
We’re landscaping experts, but our skills don’t stop there. We’re with you every step of the way as you plan your perfect outdoor space. Sod, irrigation, landscape design: let us transform your landscape into a place you want to spend every spare minute.
Are you ready to enjoy the vibrant, impressive landscape you've always wanted? Request a quote today! We’ll help you review your options and then transform your property.
Image Sources | Clusia, Podocarpus, Loropetalum, Ixora, Japanese Boxwood, Walter's Viburnum, Schefflera, Schilling Holly