Fast Growing Evergreens?

S

Scott Free

Joined
Sep 15, 1999
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Up until today, I lived in a little patch of woods. Some of the taller trees were dying, and some were leaning toward the house. We had to remove nine of them today. I want to replace them with something that will provide visual screening, as well as sound deadening, from the road. I'd like to use the fastest growing evergreens for my area. (Southwestern Pennsylvania) Any suggestions?

Scott
 
Scott

What killed the originals? What soil type? There are lots of questions that need to be asked before a recommendation could be made. Any recommendation made without the information would just be shooting blindfolded. You State Forestry department may have an extension service which could provide advice appropriate to your locale and conditions.

David

(a retired 4 s ter / forester from Northern Ontario)
 
Do Leyland Cypress grow in your area? If so, they are fast and nice looking. Paul
 
4 s ter said:
What killed the originals?
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Of the ones that were cut, only one was dead. I suspect that one was crowded out by the larger ones around it. These were huge trees. Pines and spruce. I'm guessing most were 80+ feet tall. Some of them were quite healthy, but were leaning toward the house. A few were only green in the top ten feet. These are the ones that I refered to as "dying." Perhaps they were just fine. As far as soil goes, I'm assuming its acidic, as its been under needles for a very long time. Again, maybe I'm wrong.

As bad as this is, there are still quite a few trees remaining. There's just a few gaps where I can now see the road. Unfortunately, the road is on an enbankment, so the trees will have to be 10 feet tall before they're even level with the road. Hence, the need for fast growing trees.

Scott
 
RGRAY said:
I used 6-8 foot white pine; planted about 10 feet apart.

Worked for me.
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this is correct. White Pine ( Pinus Strobus) will provide excellent cover and evergreen protection. Evergreens as a whole have a fiberous root system that usually takes about two years to establish. During the first two years you could expect to see growth of 3" a year but after the pines are extablished they can grow in excess of 12" a year.

one word of caution. White pine cannot tolerate salt. so if this is near a snow plow route that is salted this variety will not work and I would then suggest maybe white spruce.

Ren ( state certified horticulturist MI)
 
TDE said:
Do Leyland Cypress grow in your area? If so, they are fast and nice looking. Paul
Click to expand...

LEYLANDII, the fast-growing conifer which has been at the root of bitter neighbourhood disputes, has been cut down to size.

While chainsaws and secateurs have taken their toll, the fatal blow has been dealt by a bill set to make its way into law. Local councils could soon be granted new powers in dealing with the so-called curse of the Leylandii.

Few, bar those who value their privacy, will mourn Leylandii's passing, for it has variously been branded a menace and a grotesque green giant.

Few would have foreseen such a notorious adulthood in the tree's early years; it was always somewhat precocious but trouble came from the remarkable speed at which it grew - up to a metre a year.

Ever controversial, Leylandii was blamed for sucking the goodness from soil, plunging gardens into shadow, and turning good neighbours into the worst of enemies.

Councils received hundreds of complaints from people saying their views and light have been blocked by the trees. Some disputes have even escalated into protracted court battles.

For those familiar with just such a "hedge from hell", it will come as no surprise that the conifer is not a naturally occurring plant.

_38566915_hedge150.jpg


Opponents have lobbied for the death penalty

Cupressocyparis Leylandii was born in south Wales in 1888, the unplanned offspring of Monterey Cypress and Alaskan Cedar.

The proud parents had long since given hope of producing any progeny, as attempts to interbreed conifers rarely succeed.

But a success it was, and the hardy, fast-growing Leylandii was soon adopted by homeowners in need of windbreaks, sight-screens and property boundaries.

However the very qualities that made it ideal for such tasks ultimately led to its demise.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2557749.stm

maximus otter
 
Scott ,they have developed some evergreens for the Christmas tree business .These are developed for fast growing and are perhaps the fastest growing of the evergreens.Check that out.
 
I will agree with checking with the local conservation department. They came to my house, made recommendations, looked at diseased plants, wrote quotes for my insurance company, all for a glass of ice tea. Those guys have been great to me.

Twelve years ago I put Austrian pine sapplings, no bigger than a pencil. Today, they are 18-30 feet tall and provide a complet screen for the highway that we live near. Twelve years is a long time but these trees showed GREAT intent after five years.

A real key to tree success is hole preparation. We've all heard a $50 hole for a $5 tree. Dig a $100 hole instead. Remove all the rocks and put in some organic material. ( I moved from the sandy loam of the Arkansas River basin to the Ozarks. Digging is done here with a bar and hammer rather than a shovel) Water the hole well before you put material back in to raise the level for planting. It would have been very easy to plant those seedlings in a tea cup hole, but you could have hidden a five gallon bucket in my planting holes. I really think it makes a difference. You can't believe the holes I dig for a "balled and burlap" tree ! Good luck and happy digging !
 
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