Comments on: Pittosporum for Privacy Hedge

By: Alex

Alex — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 05:55:31 +0000

Hi guys, I finally planted those P.Eugenoides I talked about on the 30th of October, it took me a while to get them in the ground, hehe.. I kept them watered while I did some investigating around the neighbourhood to check various hedge spaces. I ended up planting them 1.6 metres apart as that fits evently where i needed the privacy.. I see the Eugenoides grow quite bushy and wide and i’m not nessecarily after a thick formal hedge but more of a natural tree bunched together look (if you know what i mean) that offers decent privacy. My other Pittosporums I planted a few months ago up one side of the backyard are growing very well.. possibly another foot since my first post.. I must be doing something right. Thanks for the advice Prose on trimming off the tops so they get bushy. Cornelia, How far apart did you have the hedges (Tenufoliums?) planted initially? ..also, I live in the north in Launceston. – Alex

By: Cornelia

Cornelia — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 05:16:44 +0000

Hi Prose, hi Alex,
Thanks for your replies. As for spacing, I spaced my pittosporums too far initially (about 6 months ago when I first bought my house) and just relocated them again about 4 weeks ago. They are very forgiving and are full of new growth already despite the shock of being dug out again. As for a fast growing P. in Tasmania, I would recommend the Limelight, Green Pillar and Sunburst. I have just pruned them and they develop new growth quickly. They love it here. Whereabouts in Tassie are you, Alex? (I’m in Hobart). The Tassie climate should be similar to Cal but a longer and cooler summer. No frost in winter, though.

Cornelia

By: Prose

Prose — Sun, 31 Oct 2010 17:35:15 +0000

Hey Alex, good luck with your planting decisions. Fyi, I planted my hedge on 4′ centers. The guy at Bongards Nursery in Half Moon Bay (where I got mine) said that many people plant them on 3′ centers so that they’ll grow faster and fill in. I was willing to be more patient and therefore save a little $$ by spacing them out more. The key is that as they shoot up every foot or so, you want to shear the tops off of about half that new growth so that the sides will bush out. I would also add that these pittosporum are not really speedy growers. I planted mine 1 year ago and I have sheared them only twice since then and they are definitely filled in and “together” now, but probably only 1′ or so higher, although doubled in “bushiness” if you know what I mean. I’ll try to followup with another post soon! ~prose

By: Alex

Alex — Sat, 30 Oct 2010 08:41:58 +0000

Hi Prose, I’ll have to check out where Half Moon Bay is on the map. Looks like things grow well there! I went and bought some P.Eugenoides Varigatum’s today.. Got 6 little fellas for $30. I’m a bit puzzled as to how far apart i should space them.. I’ll have a play around tomorrow in the yard and see what i come up with.. I have to work around a couple of fruit trees which is a bit tricky. I think as the hedges grow I’ll have to trim a little bit out so i don’t smother the fruit trees. I wouldn’t mind going for the same look as the P.Eugenoides tall thick hedges you have pictured above.. Looks great. Cheers, Alex.

By: Prose

Prose — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 05:31:33 +0000

Hey Alex! Happy to hear that you liked the post and the photos. I am in Half Moon Bay, California, just in case you didn’t know. It would be interesting to know how our climates compare, because a number of houses around here use P.Eugenoides very effectively as a screen. ~prose

By: Alex

Alex — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 08:14:20 +0000

Hi guys, This is bizzare.. I’m from Tasmania in Australia too! haha.. wierd! (Hi Cornelia) I recently planted 9 P.Tenufoliums up the side of my backyard and i’ve been dedicated and watering them everyday. They’ve been in for about 2 months and i think they’ve grown a foot already! I now need to plant something up the very back fence to screen off the house over the back.. I’m thinking i’ll go the P.Eugenoides for this one for something different. I’ll be taking some photos out of interest for myself to see the growth progress.. let me know if you guys are interested in seeing some pics. Prose, thanks for the tips and great photos! Exactly what i was after!

Talk soon, Alex (Tasmania).

By: Prose

Prose — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 13:43:29 +0000

Hi Cornelia and thanks for your comment! I had a really good time taking photos of these plants around my neighborhood, and they really informed my decision. I’ll be sure to post a follow through photo. The shrubs have already doubled in height and are now peaking past the edge of the patio. They would have grown more had I not sheared them off 2 times, which I did to get them to bush out more.

By: Cornelia

Cornelia — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 07:38:16 +0000

These photos are magnificent. Thanks for posting this! I am in Australia where Pittosporum grows very well, too. Your page has really helped me find solutiions for a few screening problems on my property. I, too, love the Tenufolium varieties, especially the limelight. I would love to see an update of how your small hedge has developed over the year if you have the time to post some photos. Regards,

Cornelia (Tasmania)