Myrica californica.

I have a Schipka Laurel hedge that is doing very well. It has dark green leaves and gets white flower spikes. It isn't as big as an English Laurel. It grows fairly fast for me.
I also have Eleagnus Augustifolia, but it would take more trimming if you wanted a more formal look. It has some thorns and it has sweet smelling flowers, which you can't see very well, but you know when you walk by the area that it is in bloom. It's slower growing than my laurels.

'Schipkaensis' is merely a named cultivar of English laurel (Prunus laurocerasus). I do not think any of this species should be planted here anymore, it is popping up frequently from seed.

Bamboo is perfect for this situation.

Bamboo would work if

- A vertical kind like Narihira is used, that won't produce culms that lean over into the way on your side or over onto the neighbor's side

- A root barrier is used, so it doesn't spread into where it is not wanted

- Both you and the neighbor don't mind the papery, abundant litter it produces

- You don't care if it gets full of bamboo mites, a likely happening in this region

It wouldn't be near 8' wide, but how about Emerald Green arborvitae at 7' to start?

It would be at least 8' in a year or so.

Except, I plant blue columnar junipers on the ends and at intervals in some arborvitae hedges to be natural pillars or columns. I shear the junipers about 1' taller than the arborvitae.

Those junipers would be Skyrocket, Moonglow or Wichita. All three will shear into columns if sheared from year one.

It's an interesting hedge look.

These are great ideas. I'm in a similar situation, except the neighbor has children who run wild and have no concept of staying in their own yard. Oh yes, and they (father or children) periodically vandalize my home, too. Any fence that's built or anything that's planted near the property line will somehow be damaged.... :-( I'm almost tempted to try something thorny, though, assuming it will just be throwing away money.

I went with the Myrica californica on bboy's advice. It took me four weeks to find any of them, but I think they'll make a nice looking hedge.

Seriousley though, we know you can't go over and give your ignorant neighbor a floggin on the noggin. So a hedge is a wise choice. English Laurel or Golden Bamboo would screen him out. I have a few English Laurels on my property that I grew from cuttings in 1992 and they are now like trees at 15'ft tall and very wide a bushy. Cheers, Joe

It's not a big leaf, but Darwin's barberry gets tall, is attractive, and is quite capable of self defence. I have a small one that is leafing out nicely now, though I did have one branch die when I transplanted it. AKA Berberis darwinii.