Need Privacy Fast? Try These 13 Fast-Growing Shrubs

Posted by TJ Hopkins on Jul 28th 2026

Need Privacy Fast? Try These 13 Fast-Growing Shrubs

If your backyard feels a little too exposed, planting fast-growing shrubs is one of the easiest ways to create a natural privacy screen. Unlike fences, living hedges add beauty, provide habitat for birds and pollinators, reduce noise, and improve your landscape year-round. Many privacy shrubs grow several feet each year, allowing you to enjoy a lush, green barrier much sooner than you might expect.

Whether you're looking to block a neighbor's view, hide an unsightly fence, or create a peaceful outdoor retreat, these 13 fast-growing shrubs are excellent choices.

1. Green Giant Arborvitae

Growth Rate: 3–5 feet per year

Although technically an evergreen tree, Green Giant Arborvitae is often planted as a dense privacy screen. It grows rapidly, resists deer better than many arborvitae varieties, and stays green all year.

Best Features:

  • Excellent year-round privacy
  • Disease resistant
  • Low maintenance
  • Ideal for large yards

2. Privet

Growth Rate: 2–3 feet per year

Privet has long been one of the most popular hedge plants thanks to its quick growth and dense foliage. It responds well to pruning, making it easy to maintain neat, formal hedges.

Best Features:

  • Very fast growing
  • Easy to shape
  • Great for privacy walls

3. Wax Myrtle

Growth Rate: 3–5 feet per year

Wax Myrtle is a beautiful evergreen shrub with aromatic foliage and attractive berries that birds love. It thrives in warm climates and tolerates poor soils.

Best Features:

  • Evergreen
  • Wildlife friendly
  • Drought tolerant once established

4. Cherry Laurel

Growth Rate: 2–3 feet per year

Cherry Laurel produces glossy green leaves that create an elegant privacy hedge. It tolerates shade better than many evergreen shrubs.

Best Features:

  • Thick evergreen foliage
  • Shade tolerant
  • Attractive white spring flowers

5. Leyland Cypress

Growth Rate: 3–4 feet per year

For homeowners who need privacy quickly, Leyland Cypress is one of the fastest-growing options available.

Best Features:

  • Extremely rapid growth
  • Tall privacy screen
  • Evergreen

6. Red Twig Dogwood

Growth Rate: 2–3 feet per year

This colorful shrub provides seasonal interest with brilliant red stems during winter while offering excellent screening in summer.

Best Features:

  • Bright winter color
  • Supports pollinators
  • Moisture tolerant

7. Forsythia

Growth Rate: 2 feet per year

Known for its brilliant yellow spring flowers, Forsythia also grows quickly into an effective informal hedge.

Best Features:

  • Spectacular spring blooms
  • Easy to grow
  • Great flowering screen

8. American Hazelnut

Growth Rate: 2–3 feet per year

American Hazelnut forms a dense thicket that provides privacy while producing edible nuts for people and wildlife.

Best Features:

  • Native shrub
  • Wildlife habitat
  • Edible harvest

9. Viburnum

Growth Rate: 1–2 feet per year

Many Viburnum varieties develop into thick evergreen or semi-evergreen hedges with fragrant flowers and colorful berries.

Best Features:

  • Fragrant blooms
  • Attractive berries
  • Excellent screening

10. Red Tip Photinia

Growth Rate: 2–3 feet per year

Red Tip Photinia is prized for its brilliant red new growth that gradually matures into glossy green leaves.

Best Features:

  • Colorful foliage
  • Dense hedge
  • Fast establishment

11. Ninebark

Growth Rate: 2–3 feet per year

Ninebark is a hardy native shrub known for peeling bark, colorful foliage, and clusters of white flowers.

Best Features:

  • Cold hardy
  • Attractive bark
  • Pollinator friendly

12. Burning Bush

Growth Rate: 1–2 feet per year

Burning Bush creates a thick hedge throughout the growing season before turning brilliant crimson in autumn.

Best Features:

  • Outstanding fall color
  • Dense branching
  • Easy maintenance

Note: Burning Bush is considered invasive in some regions. Check local recommendations before planting.

13. Lilac

Growth Rate: 1–2 feet per year

Lilacs provide both privacy and one of spring's most fragrant flower displays. When planted in rows, they create beautiful flowering screens.

Best Features:

  • Highly fragrant blooms
  • Long-lived shrub
  • Pollinator favorite

Tips for Growing a Privacy Hedge Faster

To help your shrubs establish quickly:

  • Plant in full sun whenever possible.
  • Water deeply during the first growing season.
  • Add mulch to retain moisture and suppress weeds.
  • Fertilize lightly in early spring if recommended for your shrub.
  • Space plants according to their mature width to encourage healthy growth.
  • Prune only as needed while plants become established.

Choosing the Right Privacy Shrub

Before planting, consider:

  • Your USDA hardiness zone
  • Mature height and width
  • Evergreen versus deciduous foliage
  • Available sunlight
  • Soil drainage
  • Desired maintenance level

Selecting shrubs that match your local climate will result in healthier plants and a longer-lasting privacy screen.

Final Thoughts

Creating a private backyard doesn't have to take decades. By choosing fast-growing shrubs, you can enjoy a lush, natural living fence in just a few seasons. Whether you prefer evergreen coverage, colorful flowers, or wildlife-friendly landscapes, there's a fast-growing shrub that fits your yard and gardening style.