Ficus microcarpa

'Flash' is a compact, quick-growing form of Ficus microcarpa var. hillii, flushing light green over a body of dense emerald foliage. It is the workhorse of tall formal screens in warm climates, fast to establish, thick to the ground and tolerant of hard clipping.

In the landscape

Use it wherever a tall evergreen screen or formal hedge is needed at pace: boundary screening at 2.5–3.5 m centres, pleached avenues, topiary and clipped columns beside pools and courtyards. It shrugs off coastal exposure and urban pollution. Plan for its roots, keep it away from paving, pipes and pools unless root barriers are used.

Growing notes

• Climate: Queensland and warm coastal New South Wales; tolerates tropical heat but is sensitive to all except the lightest frosts
• Evergreen, fast growing
• Soil: most soils, best with reliable moisture
• Mature size in the ground: 10–15 m if left untrimmed; almost always maintained as a clipped screen of 4–8 m
• Low maintenance once established; takes hard pruning readily

This tree

• Currently standing: 64 trees
• Field-grown ex-ground at Donkin Farm, Utchee Creek, root-pruned and basket-lifted, delivered and craned Australia-wide; price on application through the Shortlist