Selections for Skinny Hedges

Selections for Skinny Hedges

Not every garden has room for a wide, sprawling hedge. Along a boundary, beside a driveway, between two houses or down the side of a courtyard, the growing space is often only a metre or less across. The good news is that you do not have to give up on privacy or a green screen. A number of trees are naturally narrow, or can be clipped to stay slim, holding a dense wall of foliage in very little width.

The selections below are our pick of the trees that make a genuinely skinny hedge or screen. Some grow naturally columnar, others take well to clipping to stay tight, and all of them hold their foliage year-round. 

With nearly 50 years growing containerised landscape trees, our team has chosen varieties that stay healthy and look good in the narrowest of spaces. 

Browse the range below, and read on for how to choose and space them.

Row of narrow columnar evergreen trees grown as skinny hedge and screening stock at Speciality Trees

Why Choose a Narrow (Skinny) Hedge

A skinny hedge gives you the privacy and structure of a traditional hedge without the width that eats into a small garden. In a tight side setback or a narrow courtyard, a naturally slim tree means you keep your usable space, stay clear of fences and paths, and still get a solid green screen. Because the trees below hold their foliage all year, the screen works in winter as well as summer, which is exactly when you notice a bare boundary most.

Narrow evergreen trees also suit the way modern blocks are built, with houses closer together and less room between them. For a formal look, a clipped conifer gives crisp lines. For a softer, wildlife-friendly screen, a narrow native brings flowers and birds. Browse more options under hedging, formal screening and informal screening.

How to Choose Trees for a Skinny Hedge

A few questions narrow the choice quickly: how tight the space is, whether you want a formal clipped look or a natural form, and whether you prefer a native or an exotic.

By how narrow the space is

For the very tightest spaces, a naturally columnar tree such as Syzygium 'Straight and Narrow' or Italian Pencil Pine holds a slim profile with little clipping. Where there is a little more room, a clipped hedge can be kept to whatever width you maintain it at. Browse fastigiate and columnar forms for more narrow-growing trees.

Formal or natural

For a crisp, formal screen, the conifers (Pencil Pines and Upright Cedar) clip into clean lines and hold them well. For a softer, more relaxed screen,  narrow Lily Pilly such as 'Straight and Narrow' and the 'Slim' Bottlebrush give a natural form with foliage colour, flowers and, in some, small fruits.

Native or exotic

If you want to support local birds and insects, the narrow natives, Lilly Pilly and the Bottlebrush, flower and fruit and draw wildlife into the garden. If you want year-round formality and a Mediterranean feel, the exotic conifers deliver structure and a strong vertical line.

Our Selections for Skinny Hedges

Each tree below is grown for a narrow habit and is ready to plant now. Container sizes are listed for each, including larger bags for an instant hedge where available. For more narrow screening options, see our Lilly Pilly hedging and screening guide and the related skinny screen selections.

Formal columnar conifers

Cupressus sempervirens 'Glauca' (Italian Pencil Pine)

A popular selection for framing driveways and entrances, the Italian Pencil Pine has dark, dense grey-green foliage and grows in the narrowest of spaces. It holds its slim, upright form all year and needs very little clipping to stay tight. 

Typical container sizes: 30 cm / 14L, 40 cm / 27L, 50 cm / 52L

Cupressus sempervirens 'Glauca' (Italian Pencil Pine) as a narrow columnar screening tree

Thuja plicata 'Fastigiata' (Upright Western Red Cedar)

A compact, upright conifer with a luscious deep green colour and a naturally slim habit. Easy to clip, it makes a superb formal hedge, and we carry good numbers in 40 cm and 50 litre bags plus ample supply in 150 litre bags for an instant large hedge.

Typical container sizes: 30 cm / 14L, 40 cm / 27L, 50 cm / 52L (150L for instant hedge)

Thuja plicata 'Fastigiata' (upright Western Red Cedar) can be grown as a formal clipped hedge

Narrow Native Lilly Pilly

Syzygium australe 'Straight and Narrow' (Lilly Pilly)

A better form than the narrow-growing 'Pinnacle' thanks to its dense foliage and naturally columnar form. Foliage is a mid-green colour and the fruits are reddish-pink. As the name suggests, it is a great selection for the narrowest of spaces, holding a slim, upright shape with minimal maintenance.

Typical container sizes: 40 cm / 27L, 50 cm / 52L

Syzygium australe 'Straight and Narrow' (columnar Lilly Pilly) as a very narrow evergreen screen

Narrow Native Bottlebrush

Callistemon viminalis 'Slim' (Slim Bottlebrush)

Callistemon, with red flowers over the warmer months from spring to autumn, but with the benefit of being able to be used as a compact alternative in narrower positions. It can also be used as a screen or hedge to attract birds, bees and butterflies into the garden.

Typical container sizes: 40 cm / 27L, 50cm / 52L

Callistemon viminalis 'Slim' (narrow Bottlebrush) produces red flowers and isd perfect for a slim screen

Skinny Hedge Trees at a Glance

A quick reference for comparing the varieties in this selection by type, size, habit and best use.
 

Skinny Hedges for Common Situations

The same handful of narrow trees solves most tight-space screening problems. Here is where each tends to work best.

●      Down a narrow side boundary or between two houses: 'Straight and Narrow' lilly pilly or an Italian pencil pine, both of which hold a slim profile in a bed less than a metre wide.

●      Framing a driveway or entrance: Italian pencil pines planted in a row give a formal, Mediterranean avenue effect with a strong vertical line.

●      A formal clipped hedge along a fence: upright Western Red Cedar clips into crisp lines, and larger 150 litre stock gives an almost instant result.

●      A softer screen with flowers and birds: 'Pinnacle' lilly pilly or the slim bottlebrush bring foliage colour, flowers and wildlife to a narrow bed.

●      Around a courtyard or pool: a compact narrow native keeps the footprint small while still giving privacy and greenery close to paving.

If you are not sure which suits your site, our team can help you weigh up width, height and the look you want.

 

Planting, Spacing and Care for a Narrow Hedge

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a skinny hedge?

A skinny hedge is a hedge made from naturally narrow trees, or trees clipped to stay slim, so it screens a boundary or space that is only a metre or less wide. It gives the privacy of a traditional hedge without taking up the width.

What are the best narrow trees for privacy screening?

For a formal look, Italian Pencil Pine and upright Western Red Cedar hold a tight columnar shape. For a softer native screen, narrow lilly pillies such as ‘Pinnacle’ and ‘Straight and Narrow’, and the slim bottlebrush, give dense foliage plus flowers and birdlife.

How close together should I plant a narrow hedge?

For a continuous screen, plant the columnar conifers and lilly pillies around 60 to 90 centimetres apart. Closer spacing knits together faster; wider spacing takes longer but uses fewer trees. Larger containers give a quicker result.

Are there narrow native trees for hedging?

Yes. The narrow Lilly Pillies ('Straight and Narrow') and the 'Slim' Bottlebrush are all Australian natives that stay slim, flower, and attract birds and pollinators, making them ideal for a wildlife-friendly narrow screen.

How narrow can these hedges be kept?

With regular light clipping, the conifers and columnar Lilly Pillies can be held to well under a metre wide. The naturally columnar forms need the least work to stay slim, while a clipped hedge can be maintained to whatever width you trim it to.

Ready to Plant a Skinny Hedge?

These selections are ready to plant now for a narrow screen that works all year. Browse the varieties above to check current sizes and availability, explore more hedging and screening trees, or get in touch and our team will help you match the right narrow tree to your space, soil and the look you are after.