Clusia Guttifera is durable in many forms; it is bug free and pest free saving you thousands in spraying and maintanence. Clusia or Small Leaf Clusia is a great ficus replacement. South Florida is filled with ficus as ficus once was the best hedge plant for a privacy hedge, but recently the white fly plague has destroyed most south Florida ficus hedges. Luckily today we have a great alternative to the dying ficus that no longer offers privacy and makes our yards look mistreated. The clusia hedge is that great alternative, staying full top to bottom and blocking out for privacy with its dense thick green leaves the clusia is aesthetically beautiful, bug free and drought tolerant, the family of a native south florida species, the clusia guttifera loves our sandy soil in south florida. The care for clusia is minimal and in the summer with south florida rain only little watering is required. Clusia hedges grow moderately fast about 2.5-3 feet a year and if maintained trimmed they will always stay full from top to bottom. The suggested installation spacing is 1.5 feet to 2 feet on the 7 gallon plants, 2.5 – 3 feet on the 15 gallon clusia pots and 4-5 feet on the 25 gallon clusia hedges, the smaller buckets in 3 gallon you must plant a foot apart in order for the leaves to grow together and create a dense privacy hedge.