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Leyland Cypress

Cupressocyparis leylandii · Cupressaceae
25m
Mature height
4
Councils: no permit needed
0
Councils: exempt under a height limit
16
Councils: permit required
Leyland Cypress (Cupressocyparis leylandii) growing in Sydney
Leyland Cypress · typical mature form

Do you need a permit?

Leyland Cypress is exempt in some councils and protected in others, and several exemptions carry a height limit. Check the table below against the council for your address before assuming a permit is not needed.

How to identify it

A dense upright conifer with flattened sprays of scale like foliage, usually planted in a row as a screen. Grows extremely fast and rarely produces cones. Dies back from the base when crowded.

Where it grows in Sydney

Planted as boundary screening across the whole of Sydney, particularly common in Ku-ring-gai, Hornsby Shire, the Hills District and larger Eastern Suburbs gardens.

Common problems

  • Grows far taller than the screen height intended
  • Will not regrow from old brown wood, so hard pruning leaves permanent gaps
  • Root competition dries out garden beds
  • Common source of boundary disputes over height and shading

What removal involves

Exempt on the Northern Beaches, in Lane Cove, Woollahra and Randwick, and protected elsewhere subject to the size thresholds. Usually a row rather than a single tree, so access and volume drive the price more than technical difficulty.

Council permit rules, council by council

Status below is for a tree on private land that has passed the council’s size threshold. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas, significant tree registers, biodiversity mapping and conditions of development consent override every exemption shown here.
Council
Status
What it means
Northern Beaches
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Ku-ring-gai
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Hornsby Shire
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
The Hills Shire
Confirm with Council
Council holds its species exemptions in a document rather than on its website, so confirm this species with Council before treating removal as exempt. Size thresholds apply in the meantime. Official rules
Blacktown City
Permit required
Council does not run a species exemption list. A permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold, and each tree is assessed on its own merits. Official rules
North Sydney
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Willoughby
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Lane Cove
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
City of Ryde
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Hunters Hill
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
City of Sydney
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Inner West
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Woollahra
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Waverley
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Randwick
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Bayside
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Georges River
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Strathfield
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Burwood
Confirm with Council
Council holds its species exemptions in a document rather than on its website, so confirm this species with Council before treating removal as exempt. Size thresholds apply in the meantime. Official rules
Canterbury-Bankstown
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Can my Leylandii hedge be reduced instead of removed?

It can be reduced in height, but it will not reshoot from old brown wood, so cutting back into bare timber leaves permanent gaps. Regular light trimming is the only way to keep it as a screen.

Commonly confused with

Radiata Pine
Both planted as fast screens and windbreaks that outgrow the space

Related species

Radiata Pine (Pinus radiata) growing in Sydney
Radiata Pine
Pinus radiata
Norfolk Island Pine (Araucaria heterophylla) growing in Sydney
Norfolk Island Pine
Araucaria heterophylla
African Olive (Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata) growing in Sydney
African Olive
Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata
Athel Tree (Tamarix aphylla) growing in Sydney
Athel Tree
Tamarix aphylla

Important note on council rules

This encyclopedia is a practical guide for Sydney property owners, not legal advice. Council tree rules change, and exemptions are frequently overridden by heritage listings, heritage conservation areas, significant tree registers, biodiversity mapping, endangered ecological communities and conditions attached to development consent. Always confirm the current rules with your council for your specific address before any tree work begins, or ask us to check it for you.
Photo by Crusier via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Quick facts

Botanical name
Cupressocyparis leylandii
Also known as
Leighton Green, Cypress
Family
Cupressaceae
Origin
Hybrid of garden origin
Mature height
15m to 25m
Canopy spread
4m to 8m
Growth rate
Very fast
Foliage
Evergreen, flat scale like sprays
Typical lifespan
40 years plus
Root habit
Shallow and dense
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