Photos by MATT GENTRY The Roanoke Times

Mike Coulehan of L&L Wholesale Nursery in Christiansburg grabs a Leyland cypress, which has made it onto a list of the Blacksburg's all-star "recommended" trees for privacy screen required by town code. But it has its downfalls: "They won't take the winter wind," Coulehan says. "They burn up on one side."

At left: Coulehan holds a Leyland cypress. Despite the popularity of the Leyland as a screening tree in Blacksburg, Coulehan still favors the white pine.

BLACKSBURG -- Meet Leyland.

If he doesn't already live at your house, he has likely taken up residence nearby.

You'll find his name printed in the town code and often hear it bandied about by politicians, developers and other heavy hitters.

"Leyland cypress are the new white pine," Vice Mayor Leslie Hager-Smith commented at Tuesday's Blacksburg Town Council meeting.

In fact, Leyland cypress has arisen as one of the town's most popular trees and his influence is growing. But who is this Leyland cypress? And does his sudden rise to power spell trouble?

One casualty of Leyland's rise has been the waning influence of white pine. Once considered a stalwart screening tree, the white pine now is singled out as particularly injurious to the landscape, labeled "scraggly" and virtually banned from the town code.

Meanwhile, despite a shallow root system and problems with both bagworms and fungus, Leyland has made it onto a list of the town's all-star "recommended" trees for privacy screen required by town code.

What is at the root of Leyland's political power? It's a seedy story of politics and money. Being fast, easy and cheap has made Leyland friends in high places.

Leyland can be cultivated easily in pots and is available from $5 to $50 at just about any commercial nursery, including Wal-Mart, Lowe's and The Home Depot.

Tall, handsome and accommodating, Leyland is beloved by builders, who dream of quick-growing privacy screens. And Leyland preys on the desire of officials to keep the peace between neighbors, who may not approve of each other's parking lots or hot tub parties.

Quietly, though, some are beginning to question the spread of Leyland across town.

"They won't take the winter wind," said Mike Coulehan of L&L Wholesale Nursery in Christiansburg. "They burn up on one side."

If they're planted in overly moist soil, they can blow over in a stiff wind. Subjected to sustained drought, Leyland "will just croak," Coulehan said.

There's no question Leyland "is being planted in monoculture around here," Blacksburg town horticulturist John Boyer said.

"They are so closely grouped and there are so many of them," he added.

That lack of diversity can cause problems, Boyer said.

An infestation of insects or the spread of a blight could kill trees by the hundreds, leaving large gaps in the town's hedgerows, he said.

While every tree has its problems, Boyer suggests looking at alternatives to Leyland. The eastern red cedar, for example, is a good substitute, as is the green giant, Boyer said.

But for Coulehan, the screening tree of choice is still the white pine.

"They're the best thing to plant around here," he said.