Cupressus Leylandii Trees

Leylandii - fast growing evergreen conifers for hedging and privacy screening. 
Cupressus Leylandii trees are often referred to as simply Leylandii or Leyland Cypress.The full botanical name is Cupressus x Leylandii and they are acknowledged as one of the fastest growing evergreen conifers here in the UK. Leylandii are mainly used for hedging and evergreen screening yet all Cupressus trees make excellent roosting places and are often used as nest sites by birds such as greenfinches, robins, dunnocks and wrens. A Cupressus Leylandii hedge provides year round shelter for a wide range of wildlife.

The continuing popularity of Cupressus Leylandii for hedging here in the UK is hardly surprising if you look at this plant’s characteristics. As well as being evergreen, a prerequisite of any year round screening, Leylandii are very fast growing, expect a growth rate of at least 3 feet per year. Leyland Cypress will grow and perform well in virtually any soil but do need to be maintained.

Cypress Leylandii new growth lends itself very well to trimming and a Leylandii hedge maintains its shape well if trimmed regularly, ideally 2 to 3 times per year. Leyland Cypress hedging should not be cut back too hard beyond the green foliage, as they do not shoot from old wood. Best practise is to give consistently regular trims rather than letting them grow and cutting back hard. If you follow this rule you will be rewarded with a neat dense hedge that will provide instant privacy. Leylandii trees are still the fastest and most cost effective way of achieving a neat tall hedge or screen in the garden. They grow up to 1m per year (2-3ft). 

If you prefer a more moderate growth and a Cypress tree that easily re-grows from a hard prune, we recommend Thuja Plicata Martin – it looks very similar to Leylandii but is more forgiving when cut back hard.

Leyland Cypress is also available in a golden colour, either as Cupressus Leyland Goldrider and / or  the ever popular Leylandii Castlewellan Gold. For more information, view our entire collection of Conifers.

See our full range of trees and shrubs for Evergreen Screening. 
View our Blog post on Using Plants for Screening.