Fast-Growing Cedar Bushes and Trees

by Janet Beal
    Some cedar varieties are fast growers.

    Some cedar varieties are fast growers.

    For privacy screening, creating deep shade or planting an enduring specimen tree, some members of the cypress (Cupressaceae) family qualify as fast-growing landscape assets. True cedars (Cedrus sp.) are native to western Asia, North Africa and the Mediterranean. A sometimes-confusing variety of other cypress trees and bushes carry the cedar name because of their strong resemblance to true cedars. Several kinds of both true and false cedars are rapid growers.

    Growth Rates and Conditions

    According to Michael Dirr's Manual of Woody Landscape Plants and the Arbor Day Foundation, trees and shrubs that grow 25 inches per year or more are considered fast growers. Assumed growth rates assume appropriate growing conditions. For cedars, those conditions generally include full sun or partial shade, excellent soil drainage, limited water and shelter from wind. Able to tolerate drought, cedars do poorly in heavy soils and confined spaces. As very tall, long-lived trees, cedars generally grow more rapidly in the first 10 to 20 years of life and more slowly thereafter, resulting in a lifetime growing rate of medium, or even slow.

    Blue Atlas Cedar 'Glauca' (Cedus atlantica 'glauca')

    This tree belongs to one of the 4 or 5 genuses classified as true cedars, within the larger and sometimes confusing cypress (Cupressaceae) family. A native of the Atlas Mountains in North Africa, Blue Atlas cedar is hardy in United States Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zones 6 through 8b and possibly in Zone 9. Reaching heights of 60 to 100 feet in the wild, Blue Atlas usually matures to a height of 40 to 60 feet under cultivation. Trees grow rapidly during their first 10 to 20 years, forming an open pyramidal shape. Growth slows as trees age and the single leader trunk branches into a spreading crown. Blue Atlas needs plenty of space, attaining a width of 30 to 40 feet. Blue Atlas should be planted away from structures or roadways to prevent the need to prune lower branches. The weeping variety of Blue Atlas (C. atlantica "Glauca pendula) reaches only 10 to 15 feet in height and can be landscaped as a small tree or specimen shrub. Allow for a lateral spread of 6 to 10 feet to keep the drooping-branch shape intact.

    Deodar Cedar (Cedrus deodara)

    This true cedar originates in the western Himalayas. A University of Alabama campus seedling grew from 1990 through 2002 at an average rate of 3 feet per year and is projected to have a mature height of between 50 and 70 feet. Lateral spread can be 20 to 30 feet, and branches droop with growth. The final silhouette features a wide-spread flat-topped crown. The deodar cedar is hardy in USDA zones 7 through 9a.

    Incense Cedar (Calocedrus decurrens)

    Native to California, Oregon and western Nevada, the incense cedar is hardy in USDA zones 5 through 8. This fast-growing member of the cypress clan can reach more than 100 feet in the wild and grows to between 50 and 60 feet, in a cone-like shape. Lateral spread can reach 50 feet. Planted tightly, incense cedar is often used as a hedge plant in the Pacific Northwest. Although not a true cedar, incense cedar is named after the spicy cedar aroma emitted when foliage is crushed.

    Thuja 'Green Giant' (Thuja arborvitae 'Green Giant')

    This false cedar illustrates some of the confusions about cedar nomenclature. Often called Northern or Eastern White-cedar, 'Green Giant' is a hybrid of two thujas, or arborvitaes: Thuja plicata (known as Western red cedar) and Thuja standishii (Japanese cedar). 'Green Giant' is hardy in USDA zones 5 through 7 and grows as much as 3 feet a year, reaching a mature height of between 50 and 60 feet. A narrow conical shape, it has a spread of only 12 to 20 feet, making it a popular landscaping choice for instant privacy screening. A similar Thuja hybrid, 'Emerald,' retains the symmetrical conical silhouette of 'Green Giant' while reaching heights of 10 to 15 feet, with a lateral spread of 3 to 4 feet. At a rate of 6 to 12 inches a year, it is classified as a moderate grower but strongly resembles its much larger relative in its growth pattern and screening abilities.

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