any MI business selling anything called buckeye.. should go out of business ...

'Buckeye' is a common name of any Aesculus species, many of which are native plants and great garden additions. Aesculus glabra is the state tree of Ohio, so no earthly reason why it or its cousins should not be found and planted in MI.

'Buckthorn' is completely different and is the common name applied to Rhamnus species, many of which are invasive. 'Fine Line' however is a sterile cultivar and perfectly safe to be planted anywhere!

Buckthorn Fine Line was exactly what it was. Thanks!

On the website it says " PLEASE NOTE: Fine Line® Rhamnus is restricted and cannot be shipped to the state(s) of CT, IA IL, MA, ME, MN, NH, NY and VT. " which is why I probably haven't seen it here in IL. I would be putting it in large containers so I am not worried about it getting out of control.

A lot of states just consider any Rhamnus invasive and restrict sales. And this is a true hybrid, so not the same as its parent species at all, both of which can be invasive. It can produce fruit/seeds but sparingly and as previously stated, any seeds it does produce are sterile so no chance of it "getting out of control"!!

Do you know if it has a big root system? I have 12 arborvitae planted into 4 troughs that are 2'x6' and this would be to replace those. The arborvitae have gotten huge and are pushing the dirt out of the container with their roots.

It is recommended for container planting so should be OK. But there is a limit on how long any woody plant should grow in a container without root pruning and soil replacement.

GG48, Ken’s remark had to do with sports rivalries - Ohio is the Buckeye state - rather than whether Buckeyes could actually grow in MI.

Fine Line seeds do have a low germination rate, but a small percentage of the seeds are viable. The seeds that are viable, though few, should still be considered a potential threat if suitable habitats are nearby. The resulting seedlings could end up producing seeds themselves with higher germination rates than the cultivar, and they could also hybridize with other Rhamnus that may be in the area. Proceed with caution! Photo below is Fine Line. Btw, I'm with Ken: Go Blue!

Does anyone know how long it takes in the spring to get its leaves back? I'm in zone 5.

You will be looking at leafless sticks all winter regardless - I would never use a deciduous planting for any view I wanted screened throughout the year. Except maybe a sheared beech or hornbeam hedge, where the pruning might eventually produce a high degree of density. But even then I would much rather look at evergreen foliage, whenever possible.

Judging by that last photo it looks like the buckthorn definitely ain't fruitless anyway - that's quite a payload for one little section of plant top.

I don't need screening throughout the year. Just summer and parts of spring/fall.