When you’re mapping out your dream garden, plant height is a huge deal. After all, you need to know exactly how big a shrub is going to get before you can find its perfect “forever home” in your yard. If you’re eyeing Cherry Laurel (Prunus laurocerasus) for your landscape, you’re in the right place. Let’s dive into how tall these beauties actually get and where they’ll thrive best.
How Tall Does Cherry Laurel Actually Grow?
The short answer? It depends on the variety! Cherry Laurel is incredibly versatile—some types shoot straight up toward the sky, while others prefer to spread out low and wide. If you’re looking to cover some ground, there are low-growing varieties that work perfectly as groundcover. On the other hand, if you want something broad and bushy, ‘Herbergii’ is a fantastic choice. One of the best things about Cherry Laurel is that it’s a fast grower and isn’t afraid of a heavy pruning session.
To keep your laurel at your “Goldilocks” height, regular trimming is key. Pruning allows you to maintain the exact size you want, whether you’re going for a stately privacy hedge or a unique topiary shape. And don’t worry about “stunting” it—pruning actually encourages healthy, natural growth!
Here’s a quick cheat sheet for common varieties and their max heights:
- Angustifolia: up to 11.5 feet
- Caucasica: up to 16.5 feet
- Rotundifolia: up to 16.5 feet
- Novita: up to 16.5 feet
- Etna: up to 6.5 feet
- Herbergii: up to 11.5 feet
- Diana: up to 6.5 feet
- Otto Luyken: up to 4 feet
- Genolia: up to 11.5 feet
Ways to Grow Your Laurel
How you choose to grow your Cherry Laurel plays a big role in its final height. If you plant it directly in the ground, it can reach its full potential as a massive hedge or a standalone specimen tree. However, if you want to keep things a bit more contained, you can definitely grow Cherry Laurel in containers. When kept in a pot, the plant won’t grow quite as tall, making it easier to manage for patios or smaller spaces. And for the truly adventurous gardeners out there, you can even train Cherry Laurel into a Bonsai! In that case, we’re talking inches rather than feet.
