How to thicken out a Lilly Pilly hedge?

chrisjoh

Hello,

I have recently moved house and have inherited some mature Lilly Pilly trees (see photo). They provide ok privacy to the units at the back however have a gap in the middle. 

Is it possible to prune these Lilly Pillys so that they thicken up in the middle and provide better privacy?

Or should i start again with a different species of tree? What would be fast growing and provide better privacy?

cheers

Chris

MitchellMc

That's an interesting growth pattern, @chrisjoh.

You won't be able to get them to throw new growth in those areas. I certainly wouldn't recommend starting again, as these are very mature trees, but a hard prune back down to the top of the lower bushy section is likely going to be needed. This will cause new growth at the top of the bushy section, which will begin to block the windows again over the next few years. Unfortunately, to achieve this, you are going to have to remove the tops and the woody mid-sections, which will reduce your privacy.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell