I am looking for recommendations on some sort of privacy hedge that I can plant inside a fence and that grows fast.

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I tried emerald green arborvitae but they did not do too well. Most of the plants struggled along for a few years without really growing. Many have died over the last few years and a few are still barely hanging in there. I have a few evergreen trees in the area and the soil here is not the greatest either (very rocky). So I am looking for something that is hardy and can survive despite the poor soil and proximity to large trees.

Two of the options I am researching are Green Giant(Thuja plicata) and English laurel. The concern I have with laurel is that it will require regular pruning to keep it from taking over. Green giant supposedly can get very large (50Â high) and so may take over the entire area as well. Should I be looking for something else or would green giant be the way to go specially if it can be pruned easily? I have a photinia hedge on the other side but photinia seems to have an issue with black spots and hence does not seem very hardy.

Any advice would be appreciated.