One of the finest methods to increase privacy in your home and add some greenery is using hedges. The appropriate kind must be chosen, though, if you want a hedge that will grow swiftly.
There is no better way to do that than from the top fast-growing Australian native hedge plants. We’ll go over some of the Australian hedge plants with the fastest growth rates in this article to help you choose the best one for your requirements.
Table of Contents
Top Fast-Growing Australian Native Hedge Plants
- Lilly Pilly (Syzygium, Acmena smithii)
- Cheesewood (Pittosporum)
- Bottlebrush (Callistemon viminalis ‘Prolific’)
- Ornamental Gold Bamboo (Alphonse Karr)
- Mock Orange/Orange Jasmine (Murraya)
- Christmas Berry (Photinia ‘Robusta’)
- Rosemary Grevillea (Grevillea Rosmarinifolia)
- Sweet Viburnum (Viburnum odoratissimum)
- Weeping Lilly Pilly (Waterhousia floribunda)
- Starry Night (Leptospermum obovatum)
- Coastal Rosemary (Westringia fruticosa)
- Correa (Australian Fuchsia)
- Woolly Bush (Adenanthos sericeus)
- Willow Myrtle (Agonis flexuosa)
- Hop Bush (Dodonaea viscosa)
- Tea Tree (Leptospermum scoparium)
- Salt Bush (Rhagodia spinescens)
- Wattles (Acacia)
- Mint Bush (Prostanthera rotundifolia)
- Wax Flower (Philotheca myoporoides)
1. Lilly Pilly (Syzygium, Acmena smithii)
One of the nicest and most well-liked hedge plants for Australian gardens is the Lilly pilly. They are better suited to regions with more moderate climates. They can, however, be successfully cultivated in southern regions as well if you shelter them from frosts while they’re still young.
Native lilly pillies grow quickly and can grow as tall as 3 to 5 meters. However, they are content to be cut down to a more appropriate height. These plants have little edible fruits in addition to their stunning white flowers and glossy green leaves. Additionally, the pink-tinged new growth will delight you.
There are three genera of plants that are frequently referred to as “Lilly pilles,” Acmena, Syzygium, and Waterhousea. Several unique cultivars and hybrids have gained popularity across the nation.
2. Cheesewood (Pittosporum)
Pittosporums are beautiful evergreen plants that are ideal for hedging. They are ideal for use as hedges or screening plants due to their compact growth pattern and tiny leaves.
Even though several types can reach heights of about 4 meters, they are simple to keep at a smaller height with routine trimming. Popular fast-growing forms of the Pittosporum include James Stirling, Silver Sheen, and Screenmaster.
Screenmaster is the strongest of these three, growing at a faster rate and with slightly thicker stems than the other two. This makes it a very hardy plant for when you wish to quickly create a screen or hedge.
3. Bottlebrush (Callistemon viminalis ‘Prolific’)
The low-maintenance Callistemon, often known as the red-flowering bottlebrush, will gladly be pruned into an informal hedge. Simply remove the wasted flower heads from this plant to prune it, which will encourage the creation of two new stems from the cut.
The sturdy, drought- and frost-resistant Callistemon plants will draw local birds to their gorgeous floral displays. Use them as hedging, screening, or a decorative element in small planted spaces. They can withstand frost and drought as long as they are planted in full sun to part shade. Most types of soil can use them.
The Callistemon can grow up to 6 meters tall and spread out to 4 meters, although regular trimming can help restrict its development. The Callistemon is a well-liked option for gardens due to its low maintenance requirements in addition to its eye-catching red blossoms and rich green foliage.
4. Ornamental Gold Bamboo (Alphonse Karr)
When cultivated in dense plantings, bamboo creates a great screen. However, you must be sure to pick a clumping kind, such as the attractive gold bamboo. This type grows incredibly quickly and will reach a height of about 4 meters in less than 2 years.
This clumping bamboo has a narrow base and a fan-shaped top with bushy green foliage. The fact that this screening plant requires little maintenance and is drought-resistant is one of its best features.
5. Mock Orange/Orange Jasmine (Murraya)
Murraya paniculata’s luxuriant leaves and delightful citrus aroma make it a well-liked screening plant. Pruning into a beautiful, dense hedge with it is ideal.
This quick-growing, blooming hedge plant can grow to a height of 4 meters. In the spring and summer, they produce the most lovely white flowers that smell much like orange blossoms.
Keep in mind that Murraya paniculata is regarded as an invasive species in many regions around NSW and Queensland. So it could be wise to go with a hybrid variety, like the wonderful Sweet Privacy Murraya, which is a lovely hybrid with traits that are comparable to those of the original species.
6. Christmas Berry (Photinia ‘Robusta’)
Photinias are robust bushes with a maximum height of 6 meters. With their reddish-hued new growth, they are particularly striking. This particular plant produces an abundance of tiny white blooms, which are followed by little red fruits, and your neighborhood birds will adore it.
One of the reasons photinias are so well-liked by Australian gardeners is that once well-established, they are hardy plants. They can withstand drought and frost and are generally pest- and disease-resistant.
7. Rosemary Grevillea (Grevillea Rosmarinifolia)
Due to their quick growth and resilience, grevilleas make ideal informal hedging plants in large quantities. Because grevilleas are such resilient plants, they don’t require much further maintenance.
All you need to do to keep the hedge’s general shape when you grow them as a hedge is tidy them up. A grevillea hedge will be unruly but beautiful when the plants are in full bloom, so keep that in mind.
8. Sweet Viburnum (Viburnum odoratissimum)
Another well-liked hedge plant is sweet viburnum, particularly for gardeners in temperate, coastal, and subtropical areas. It has small, fragrant white blooms and broad, glossy green leaves.
When given the proper growing conditions, it will expand quickly and reach a height of roughly 3 to 4 meters, making it perfect for tall hedges. Plants should be placed roughly one meter apart because they can easily expand to a width of two to three meters.
9. Weeping Lilly Pilly (Waterhousia floribunda)
Waterhousea floribunda, often known as Weeping Lilly pilly, is a large tree that can become a hedge that is both very functional and beautiful with regular pruning. It can grow to a height of about 8 meters in a garden setting when completely developed.
The Weeping Lilly Pilly can withstand damp soils and will grow in the majority of soil types. Because it is drought and cold-tolerant, it can grow in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions, but stay away from hot and dry inland locations.
A pink and rusty flush precedes the new growth’s transition to dark green. In the summer, the plant also makes gorgeous white flowers.
10. Starry Night (Leptospermum obovatum)
A magnificent tiny tree with distinctive dark purple foliage and a weeping habit is called Starry Night. This native plant’s quick growth makes it a great informal hedge, and it also brings wildlife and birds to your yard.
11. Coastal Rosemary (Westringia fruticosa)
A common sight in many house developments, and for a good cause too! One of the greatest options for a native box hedging plant is westringia. Popular Westringia cultivars have quickly expanded, dense foliage and delicate, mauve to blue flowers that are quite alluring to local birds.
When clipped, Westringia develops a dense, compact habit and produces star-shaped flowers in shades of purple, pink, or white. They may be very readily fashioned into square hedging, and some have even been tried as topiary with great success!
Westringia can survive in a variety of climates and soil types, including coastal ones, and are drought-tolerant. Westringia thrives with routine trimming, making them a great option for box or topiary hedges.
12. Correa (Australian Fuchsia)
Similar to Westringia, it is widely grown in many housing estates due to its hardiness as well as its lovely and adaptable appearance. Correa is tolerant to hot weather and half shade.
They also appear in a range of shapes and sizes, such as spherical, grey-green leaves on Correa alba or elongated green leaves on Correa reflexa.
13. Woolly Bush (Adenanthos sericeus)
Look no further if you’re looking for extremely plush, fluffy, dense foliage! Hugging these bushes is like cuddling a huge teddy bear plant! When people pass them in the nursery, they can’t help but touch them since they are so unbelievably soft. They also make excellent hedges!
Adenanthos can withstand sandy soils, light frosts, and full sun and produces tiny red flowers.
14. Willow Myrtle (Agonis flexuosa)
When Agonis is mentioned, images of tall, graceful hedges immediately to mind. These attractive plants have green, red, and purple foliage that is somewhat weeping.
When developed as a substantial, opaque hedge, they make quite an impact! Being able to withstand coastal weather, drought, heat, and frost makes it a highly well-liked huge natural hedge plant.
15. Hop Bush (Dodonaea viscosa)
Dodonaea ‘Hop Bush’ is like agonis in many ways, but stronger and more upright. Dodonaea comes in a range of colors and sizes and can be used to create anything from little, low-maintenance hedging to enormous, vibrant showpiece hedges. They can withstand most types of soil, including drought and frost.
16. Tea Tree (Leptospermum scoparium)
Leptospermum ‘Tea Tree’, beloved by bees and a native pollinator, is a common plant in native gardens. With “Tea Tree,” you may choose from a variety of colors for both the foliage and the flowers, in sizes ranging from small, low hedging to tall, neighbor-screening hedges!
17. Salt Bush (Rhagodia spinescens)
A hedging plant with medium to low height and distinctive foliage! Native plants known as “Salt Bushes” have silvery foliage and react nicely to trimming and pruning. As their preferred hedging and topiary shrubs for public settings, many councils have adopted Westringia, Correa, and Salt Bush.
In reality, you can find these three plants clipped and sculpted to seem like your typical English Box shrub in numerous roundabouts throughout Melbourne. As resilient as they come, Salt Bush can withstand all soil types, coastal conditions, winter, drought, and heat.
18. Wattles (Acacia)
Beautiful, tall native hedging Acacia fimbriata bears the family’s characteristic yellow pompom blossom. Acacia ‘Limelight’ is a hybrid Acacia that is much shorter and perfect for borders and edging thanks to its soft, delicate, thin green foliage and nearly undetectable blossoms.
19. Mint Bush (Prostanthera rotundifolia)
Sometimes disregarded but unexpectedly appears in spring and summer when it puts on a stunning display of purple flowers that cover the entire plant!
They frequently cause cars to slow down and wonder “What is that plant?” along the sides of the road in the Wombat State Forest. They have no idea that it also creates lovely topiary and hedging. You’ve found the perfect place to find a purple hedge!
20. Wax Flower (Philotheca myoporoides)
When properly clipped and maintained, Philotheca produces a thick, green habit that can be used for a box or medium hedging or the odd huge topiary feature.
Additionally, they have a soft scent after being cut. Philotheca ‘Wax Flower’ produces tiny white blooms and can withstand a variety of environmental factors, such as frost, poor soil, and drought.
Conclusion
The fast-growing Australian native hedge plants listed here are the way to go if you want to have a combination of beautiful scenery, fresher air, and privacy. Do well to plant one after reading this if you have not planted already.
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A passion-driven environmentalist by heart. Lead content writer at EnvironmentGo.
I strive to educate the public about the environment and its problems.
It has always been about nature, we ought to protect not destroy.