Suggestions on a fast growing evergreen tree?
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rbr28
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in midwest
I'm in southern Indiana, and trees I would recommend include White Pine, Eastern Red Cedar, and White Spruce. White Pine and Eastern Red Cedar are both native. I have had white pines put on 3-4 feet a year with good care, a good location, etc. Bigger is not better when starting out. Smaller pines will usually adjust more quickly, and take off more quickly (they usually have a more satisfactory root system for the size of tree). As far as white pines being sparse...you can prune them in a way that they will grow very thick and dense, and they should stay that way for quite a while, unless or until the lower branches are extremely shaded. I don't think Eastern Red Cedar is known as an especially fast growing tree, but it sure grows fast on my lot. All mine are wild, I've never planted any, so I can't say how well they would do from a nursery. If you go with white pines, or anything else for that matter, I've had the best luck with container grown trees. Every container grown tree I have planted has seemed to take off almost immediately, with almost no signs of transplant shock. I've had significantly higher failure rates with bare root trees and b&b trees, even when planted at optimal times and given extreme care. I have lost container trees (I seem to have problems with dogwoods on my lot, even though the wild ones spread like crazy), but overall I think they are the easiest to get off to a good start, and they have the added bonus of being able to be planted (with good survival), just about any time of year.
I wouldn't recommend white cedar, even though I love the tree and have several close to my house. None of the cultivars I've planted have been fast growing, and most have been extremely slow growing. Beautiful trees, great for wildlife, and great for screens, but I really don't think it would grow as fast as you'd like. White spruce aren't native to my area, but they do well. They do grow quickly for a spruce, and if you are further north in the midwest, they handle extreme winters very well. In my region, they are somewhat difficult to come by at nurseries though, at least harder to find than white pine.
Keep in mind too, how big all these trees get. People always tend to plant them way too close to the house, not realizing how big they will get. You might be better off with some of the dwarf evergreens, or ones that are more shrublike. Yews look somewhat like hemlock, they are evergreens, they grow very quickly, they can be pruned to the ground and still grow back quickly, and they are easily controlled. They will get big if you let them, but you can train them anyway you want, to be more like a tree, more like a shrub, etc. You should be able to find Yews at almost any good nursery.
After all that I caught the later post about not wanting an evergreen. Plenty of good deciduous trees that will grow quickly in clay soil, but again, you might want to be careful of size. On my lot, crabapples, some hawthorns, dogwoods, and rebuds all do well. I probably wouldn't recommend any of these other than the redbud for a close to house location, for many reasons. I think the redbud would be a nice possibility that I didn't see mentioned elsewhere though. Yellowwoods are also one of my favorites, but they are pretty slow growing and difficult to find in nurseries.
Finally, if you have the room, one more I'd strongly recommend if you want very fast growth, is the bald cypress. It does lose it's needles in winter, but it's a beautiful tree in all seasons and they do seem to transplant so well. They do excellent in clay soil and you really need bad conditions or severe neglect for them to not survive. I've planted some in the heaviest clay soil in a low gully on my lot that always stay's damp, and one of them put on at least a couple feet and filled in very nicely just from june-Aug. I swear I could go out there every day and see new growth on the tree. In good conditions they can put on 4 feet +/yr, yet they are very long lived, can tolerate everything from wet to dry conditions once established, and have few pests. The only concern would be that they get huge, 80-100ft plus, so it's not the kind of tree you want on a small lot or too close to anything else.
I'm in southern Indiana, and trees I would recommend include White Pine, Eastern Red Cedar, and White Spruce. White Pine and Eastern Red Cedar are both native. I have had white pines put on 3-4 feet a year with good care, a good location, etc. Bigger is not better when starting out. Smaller pines will usually adjust more quickly, and take off more quickly (they usually have a more satisfactory root system for the size of tree). As far as white pines being sparse...you can prune them in a way that they will grow very thick and dense, and they should stay that way for quite a while, unless or until the lower branches are extremely shaded. I don't think Eastern Red Cedar is known as an especially fast growing tree, but it sure grows fast on my lot. All mine are wild, I've never planted any, so I can't say how well they would do from a nursery. If you go with white pines, or anything else for that matter, I've had the best luck with container grown trees. Every container grown tree I have planted has seemed to take off almost immediately, with almost no signs of transplant shock. I've had significantly higher failure rates with bare root trees and b&b trees, even when planted at optimal times and given extreme care. I have lost container trees (I seem to have problems with dogwoods on my lot, even though the wild ones spread like crazy), but overall I think they are the easiest to get off to a good start, and they have the added bonus of being able to be planted (with good survival), just about any time of year.
I wouldn't recommend white cedar, even though I love the tree and have several close to my house. None of the cultivars I've planted have been fast growing, and most have been extremely slow growing. Beautiful trees, great for wildlife, and great for screens, but I really don't think it would grow as fast as you'd like. White spruce aren't native to my area, but they do well. They do grow quickly for a spruce, and if you are further north in the midwest, they handle extreme winters very well. In my region, they are somewhat difficult to come by at nurseries though, at least harder to find than white pine.
Keep in mind too, how big all these trees get. People always tend to plant them way too close to the house, not realizing how big they will get. You might be better off with some of the dwarf evergreens, or ones that are more shrublike. Yews look somewhat like hemlock, they are evergreens, they grow very quickly, they can be pruned to the ground and still grow back quickly, and they are easily controlled. They will get big if you let them, but you can train them anyway you want, to be more like a tree, more like a shrub, etc. You should be able to find Yews at almost any good nursery.
After all that I caught the later post about not wanting an evergreen. Plenty of good deciduous trees that will grow quickly in clay soil, but again, you might want to be careful of size. On my lot, crabapples, some hawthorns, dogwoods, and rebuds all do well. I probably wouldn't recommend any of these other than the redbud for a close to house location, for many reasons. I think the redbud would be a nice possibility that I didn't see mentioned elsewhere though. Yellowwoods are also one of my favorites, but they are pretty slow growing and difficult to find in nurseries.
Finally, if you have the room, one more I'd strongly recommend if you want very fast growth, is the bald cypress. It does lose it's needles in winter, but it's a beautiful tree in all seasons and they do seem to transplant so well. They do excellent in clay soil and you really need bad conditions or severe neglect for them to not survive. I've planted some in the heaviest clay soil in a low gully on my lot that always stay's damp, and one of them put on at least a couple feet and filled in very nicely just from june-Aug. I swear I could go out there every day and see new growth on the tree. In good conditions they can put on 4 feet +/yr, yet they are very long lived, can tolerate everything from wet to dry conditions once established, and have few pests. The only concern would be that they get huge, 80-100ft plus, so it's not the kind of tree you want on a small lot or too close to anything else.
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BlueRidgeMark
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I love zombie threads! 
Green Giant
I planted some of those Thuja Plicatas 3 years ago and I think the lil bstrds actually shrunk! I don't know what happenned to them. I guess its this Iowa weather that was too tough on em. I watered, fertilized, kept their space clear and nuttin. Paid alot for the lil buggers to. Must be the soil or something. They sure did'nt grow like they said they would.
I planted some of those Thuja Plicatas 3 years ago and I think the lil bstrds actually shrunk! I don't know what happenned to them. I guess its this Iowa weather that was too tough on em. I watered, fertilized, kept their space clear and nuttin. Paid alot for the lil buggers to. Must be the soil or something. They sure did'nt grow like they said they would.
1. If wifey thinks all evergreens look scraggly, you gotta git her out to see some nice evergreens. There are only about 78 trillion, ya know.
I planted a thuja plicata 'hogan' in semishade in hard clay and it's grown about 10 feet in 7 years. For a fastgrowing hardwood I like pterocarya paulownia, melea etc
I planted a thuja plicata 'hogan' in semishade in hard clay and it's grown about 10 feet in 7 years. For a fastgrowing hardwood I like pterocarya paulownia, melea etc
Ax-man
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How about Norway Spruce.
Kneejerk Bombas
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I like cedar. A Cedar fence that is.
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