Hedges
Hedges are an important part of the landscape, they possess a natural beauty that can enhance the appeal of your home while being highly functional. They are usually used for privacy, blocking out an undesirable view, obstructing noise and wind, or as an aesthetic solution to delimiting a property line. Hedges can even increase the resale value of your home when well maintained.
Sunny Tree Farm grows the two most commonly used hedge plants in south Florida: Clusia and Podocarpus ‘maki’. If you’re not familiar with hedging plants or are not sure how to make a decision, this guide will help you choose the solution that best suits your needs.
Our hedging plants are completely suitable for South Florida.
Spacing:
Hedge plants are usually spaced 1 to 2 feet apart for 3-gallon and 7-gallon plants sizes, and 3 to 5 feet apart for 15-gallon and 25-gallon sizes.
More specifically, hedge plant spacing depends on two factors:
Expected horizontal growth of plants (spread)
Current size of plants
For example: Clusias tend to grow wider than Podocarpus, hence a 3-gallon Clusia hedge can be planted 2 feet apart (center to center) since plants will grow quickly to close the gaps. On the other hand, 3-gallon Podocarpus should be planted closer together (1 foot center to center) since it is a plant that mainly grows vertically but not much horizontally.
To calculate how many plants you need, measure how many linear feet your hedge will cover and divide this number by the recommended spacing (for example: 100 linear feet of hedge divided by 2 feet apart center-to-center = 50 plants).
Clusia
Clusia Guttifera (Small Leaf Clusia) is rapidly becoming the most popular hedge plant in South Florida.
Branching out close to the ground, Clusia produces a dense hedge of olive-green thick leaves.
Clusia is a large plant, it will grow easily 20 to 25 feet tall but it can be trimmed to your liking. It prefers full sun, but tolerates partial shade nicely.
Moderate to rapid growing, it is tolerant of most soils and fares well in coastal locations and sites with poor soil conditions. Once established, Clusia is low maintenance and very drought tolerant.
Podocarpus ‘maki’
This popular shrub can grow to about 20 feet tall, but it is easily pruned to 4 - 10 feet.
The leaves are fine and smooth-textured, and the pale new growth contrasts pleasantly with the dark, matured foliage.
It forms a solid, elegant, low-maintenance hedge that adds an up-scale look to any property.
It can tolerate light shade but does best in full sun. Once established it is moderately tolerant to drought; additional water may be required during periods of hot, dry weather.
It is not a fast grower, therefore Podocarpus should be given time to grow and establish before trimming.
