Best Evergreen Trees for Privacy UK | Year-Round Garden Screening
- Kerri Cuthbert
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
When it comes to creating reliable, low-maintenance privacy in your garden, evergreen trees are hard to beat. Unlike deciduous varieties, evergreens retain their foliage all year, offering uninterrupted screening—even in the depths of winter.
In this guide, we’ll explore the best evergreen trees for privacy in the UK, tailored to different garden sizes, soil types, and climates. Whether you’re dealing with nosy neighbours or just want to block a view, there’s an evergreen tree to suit your needs.
Why Choose Evergreen Trees for Garden Privacy?
Consistent Coverage: No leaf drop means reliable privacy all year.
Wind Protection: Great for exposed sites, especially in coastal or rural areas.
Low Maintenance: Most evergreens need just a light annual prune.
Wildlife Benefits: Provide food and shelter when deciduous trees are bare.
Evergreens also bring texture, colour, and structure to winter gardens, helping your outdoor space look alive when everything else is dormant.
Best Evergreen Privacy Trees for UK Gardens
1. Western Red Cedar (Thuja plicata)
Height: 10–20m (can be kept smaller with pruning)
Spread: 4–8m
Growth Rate: 40–60cm per year
Best For: Dense, fragrant hedging
This graceful conifer creates a lush green wall with soft, pineapple-scented foliage. It's a fantastic alternative to Leylandii, offering similar coverage without becoming overwhelming. It tolerates sun or shade and can be shaped back hard—even into old wood. Care Tip: Lightly trim in spring and again in autumn to maintain shape.
2. Holly (Ilex aquifolium and cultivars)
Height: 3–10m
Spread: 2–5m
Growth Rate: 10–15cm per year
Best For: Wildlife-friendly, native screening
Holly is a classic British evergreen that grows into a dense, thorny screen perfect for deterring intruders and creating privacy. Female varieties produce bright red berries that support birds in winter. Ideal for informal hedging or as a specimen tree.
Top Varieties:
Ilex aquifolium 'J.C. Van Tol' (smooth leaves, self-fertile)
Ilex aquifolium 'Golden King' (variegated with red berries)
Ilex aquifolium 'Alaska' (tougher with darker foliage)
3. Holm Oak (Quercus ilex)
Height: Up to 25m
Spread: 8–10m
Growth Rate: 20–30cm per year
Best For: Coastal and exposed sites
Also called the "Evergreen Oak", Holm Oak is one of the toughest evergreen screening trees around. It tolerates salt, wind, and dry soils, making it perfect for coastal gardens. With regular pruning, it forms a neat, solid screen or standalone specimen. Bonus: Awarded the RHS Award of Garden Merit for reliability and performance.
4. Portuguese Laurel (Prunus lusitanica)
Height: 5–8m
Spread: 3–4m
Growth Rate: 30–50cm per year
Best For: Formal hedging and shaping
More refined than its cousin Cherry Laurel, Portuguese Laurel has elegant dark green leaves and red stems. It clips beautifully into tight hedges or privacy panels and is ideal for small-to-medium gardens. Pro Tip: Plant as a pleached panel for above-fence screening with year-round foliage.
5. Bay Tree (Laurus nobilis)
Height: 3–5m (in the ground), 1–2m (in pots)
Spread: 1–3m
Growth Rate: 10–20cm per year
Best For: Containers and small gardens
Bay trees provide a compact evergreen screen with the added bonus of edible, aromatic leaves. They grow well in containers or borders and can be shaped as cones, standards or screens. A great choice for patios, terraces, or front gardens. Note: Hardy in most UK areas, but may need winter protection in colder regions.
Evergreen Trees for Different Situations
Situation | Best Evergreen Tree |
Small urban gardens | Bay Tree, Japanese Holly, Photinia |
Windy coastal areas | Holm Oak, Italian Alder |
Shady gardens | Western Red Cedar, Yew |
Formal designs | Portuguese Laurel, Thuja |
Wildlife gardens | Holly, Cotoneaster (evergreen spp.) |
Evergreen Tree Maintenance Tips
Water well for the first year after planting to establish roots.
Mulch annually to retain moisture and improve soil.
Trim lightly once or twice a year to shape hedges and encourage dense growth.
Avoid over-pruning during hot or frosty weather to prevent stress.
Shop Evergreen Screening Trees Online
Looking for evergreen trees for year-round privacy? At Bowhayes Trees, we offer nursery-grown evergreens suited to British gardens of all shapes and sizes.
✔️Hardy, mature trees ready for screening ✔️Delivery across the UK ✔️Expert advice on planting and care
Browse our full Evergreen Screening Tree Collection now.
FAQs
Which evergreen tree grows fastest in the UK?
Western Red Cedar and Portuguese Laurel are among the fastest evergreen trees suitable for dense, year-round screening.
Can you trim evergreen trees?
Are evergreen trees good for privacy all year?
Which evergreen trees are best for windy or coastal sites?
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