Hedge Plants for Maine: What Holds, and What Only Looks Hardy

Of the 12 hedge species tracked for Maine, six survive winter anywhere in the state, six survive only in part of it, and none fail everywhere. The ones to worry about are Leyland cypress and cherry laurel, which need the mildest zone (6a), and boxwood, which needs 5a or warmer. “Survives” is a low bar, though, and three of the twelve can never be cut back to size once they outgrow their spot. Both problems are easier to fix before you buy.

What actually holds in Maine

Maine runs from zone 3b to 6a on the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023, which is built on 1991-2020 normals. A zone rests on a single variable, the average annual extreme minimum temperature. It says nothing about wind, wet ground or a warm spell followed by a hard freeze. A spread of 3b to 6a is also wide. A shrub that is comfortable in 6a is a gamble in 3b, and the hardiness ranges used here come from the NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, checked against Maine’s own range.

The six that stop short of the cold north

Leyland cypress and cherry laurel hold only in zone 6a, the warmest zone in the state. Boxwood holds in 5a, 5b and 6a. Inkberry holly, privet and yew hold from 4a through 6a, so they drop out only in the coldest pockets, zone 3b. Check your own zone before you shop, because a nursery in another state will happily sell you any of these.

Surviving is not thriving. A plant at the edge of its zone range can get through winter and still look tired, and the zone number cannot tell you which it will do. In the cold half of Maine, the plants that sit comfortably inside their range are the better bet.

The six that hold statewide

American hornbeam, winterberry holly, Eastern red cedar, arborvitae, Eastern hemlock and arrowwood viburnum survive from 3b through 6a. Winterberry and arrowwood lose their leaves in winter, so they make a screen for roughly half the year. The other four keep their needles or leaves, but red cedar and arborvitae carry the no-cutback problem covered next.

The hedges you can never cut back down

Three hedge conifers on the list have no ability to regrow from old wood: Leyland cypress, arborvitae and Eastern red cedar. Cut into the bare, brown interior and the branch does not sprout. You are left with a hole that stays a hole. Plan the final height when you plant, not when the hedge is twice the size you wanted.

Leyland cypress is the worst of them. It grows 3 to 4 feet a year, reaches 15 to 25 feet as a screen, and holds only in 6a. That is a fast, tall plant you cannot reduce and that only the mildest part of Maine can support. Arborvitae is slower at 6 to 9 inches a year and works as a hedge from 4 to 15 feet. Red cedar grows 12 to 24 inches a year toward 8 to 20 feet. Both hold statewide, but neither will forgive a heavy haircut.

Each one has a narrow pruning window, and only light cuts are safe:

• Arborvitae: late winter before growth starts, or midsummer.
• Eastern red cedar: late winter, light cuts only.
• Leyland cypress: late spring to midsummer.

The rest of the list regrows from old wood, which is why they suit a hedge that will eventually need a hard reset. Yew, privet, boxwood, inkberry, cherry laurel, hornbeam, winterberry, hemlock and arrowwood can all be cut back hard, then rebuilt over a few seasons. Hemlock is the qualifier. It does regrow, but the guidance is light cuts only, so treat a hard reset as a last resort rather than routine maintenance. Privet is the most demanding of the group, needing two trims a season, one in spring and one at midsummer.

Regrowing takes time. Yew and inkberry add just 6 to 12 inches a year, so a hard cut on either sets you back several seasons of growth. Cutting them back is possible, but it is a repair, not a shortcut.

Matching the plant to the job

Start with what the hedge has to do. A low formal edge, a privacy screen and a fast fix for a bare property line call for different plants, and the growth figures sort them quickly.

For a low edge, boxwood is the obvious choice: 2 to 6 feet as a hedge, only 3 to 6 inches of growth a year, pruned in late spring after the last frost. It holds only in zones 5a through 6a. For a dense evergreen wall that tolerates a full range of Maine zones, yew stays at 3 to 8 feet and grows 6 to 12 inches a year, and it holds from 4a. It takes its cut in late spring after the new growth hardens. Inkberry holly, the evergreen holly here, gives a similar size (5 to 15 feet) at the same growth rate, pruned in late winter while dormant.

Privacy screens run taller. Eastern hemlock reaches 10 to 20 feet as a hedge at 12 to 24 inches a year, with a late spring trim. Red cedar and arborvitae fill the same role but cannot be pruned back hard. Leyland cypress promises the most height (15 to 25 feet) and only works in 6a. Privet is the quick option at 2 to 3 feet a year and 4 to 12 feet tall, though the twice-a-season trimming is a real commitment.

Deciduous hedges suit people who want flowers, berries or fall color and don’t mind bare branches. Arrowwood viburnum grows 6 to 10 feet and takes its trim right after flowering. American hornbeam (6 to 15 feet, 12 inches a year) is cut in midsummer after the first flush. Winterberry holly, 5 to 15 feet, is pruned in late winter while dormant.

For timing, NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals put coastal Portland’s last spring frost between April 22 and May 1, and its first fall frost between October 9 and October 21 (Portland station data). Those are the 30 to 70 percent freeze-probability band at the 32°F threshold. Portland is the mild end of Maine, and inland and northern gardens have a later spring and an earlier fall. Today is September 29, so in Portland the first frost window is about ten days out, and it arrives sooner elsewhere in the state.

Gardeners in other cold states face a similar sort. The Hedge Plants for South Dakota: What Holds, and What Only Looks Hardy and Hedge Plants for Utah: What Holds, and What Only Looks Hardy pages show how the same species sort out under different winters. The broader Hedges hub covers the basics of planting and care.

The ground you are planting into

Maine’s official state soil, named by law in 1999, is the Chesuncook series, a Spodosol. That is a sandy, strongly leached, acidic soil that typically forms under conifers. USDA NRCS Soil Data Access records a surface pH of about 5.1 for it, which is strongly acid. The particle mix is 35 percent sand, 12 percent clay and 53 percent silt, and drainage is moderately well drained.

The figure that jumps out is organic matter at about 53.0 percent. That is not a garden number. It describes a natural organic layer of forest litter, and a cultivated bed will have far less. These are representative values for the surface horizon of the series as mapped (61 components, queried 2026-08-29), not a reading from anyone’s yard.

The Chesuncook is the soil that represents the state, not the soil in every garden in it. River bottoms, hill country and any lot a builder has scraped or filled can be nothing like it. What it does suggest is a tendency: ground in much of Maine can run acidic and drain only moderately well, which matters when a hedge sits in the same spot for decades.

Species-by-species pH tolerances are not published in the data behind this page, so I won’t guess which of the twelve prefers acid ground. A soil test gives you the number that counts. The University of Maine Cooperative Extension can point you to testing and to guidance for your county, and it is worth doing before you order 30 plants.

Common questions

Can I grow boxwood in northern Maine?

Probably not reliably. Boxwood holds only in zones 5a, 5b and 6a, and much of northern Maine sits colder than that. Yew, inkberry holly or hemlock are safer, and all three hold from 4a or colder.

Which hedges can I cut back hard if they get too big?

Yew, privet, boxwood, inkberry, cherry laurel, hornbeam, winterberry, arrowwood and hemlock all regrow from old wood. Hemlock is the exception to a hard cut, since guidance there is light cuts only. Arborvitae, red cedar and Leyland cypress cannot be cut back at all.

Is Leyland cypress a good fast screen for Maine?

Only in zone 6a, the warmest part of the state. It grows 3 to 4 feet a year toward 15 to 25 feet and cannot regrow from old wood, so it is a poor choice anywhere in Maine unless you are sure of your zone and your height plan.

Which hedge plants hold across the whole state?

American hornbeam, winterberry holly, Eastern red cedar, arborvitae, Eastern hemlock and arrowwood viburnum hold from 3b through 6a. Of those, hornbeam, winterberry, hemlock and arrowwood regrow from old wood. Red cedar and arborvitae do not.