Thuja are dying little by little

Exactly, yew is such a great alternative.

Unfortunately not for the reasons mentioned, if you don’t want to wait many years for privacy screening or if you don’t just happen to have a few thousand euros to spare.

Yews? Cemetery plants and poisonous from wood to needle to fruit.

Hedges are also not meant to be eaten ;)

These two plant species offer native insects and birds little nutritional value or habitat. Considering the massive insect decline over the years, this choice is unfortunate. Therefore, alternatives are being promoted.

There are simply no acceptable evergreen alternatives. From my point of view, the alternative is Thuja as a hedge and additionally flowers and shrubs in the garden for insects.

These two plant species offer native insects and birds hardly any nutritional value or habitat. Considering the enormous insect decline over the years, this choice is unfortunate. Therefore, alternatives are promoted.

...when I look at my mother-in-law's 40-year-old thuja and see what lives, crawls, and flutters inside, I just ask completely ignorantly: REALLYY???;) :p

But I understand the approach, nonetheless I have to say better cherry laurel and thuja than 40m stone gabions or double rod mat fences with woven-in privacy screens. Everyone has to decide for themselves. And whether cemetery plant or not... is a matter of taste. Around here at the cemeteries there are stone walls or hornbeam hedges. :p

There are simply no acceptable evergreen alternatives. From my point of view, the alternative is Thuja as a hedge and additionally flowers and shrubs for insects in the garden.

So far, we have cut down two of them in our garden. They simply got too big. In autumn - or at the latest with the acquisition of a patio roof - probably some others will follow, which currently serve (or should serve) as a privacy screen to the neighbor. These were planted too close to the property boundary by the previous owners of our house and are now too wide as well. They already protrude almost half a meter over the fence to the neighbor. This hedge is also used by numerous birds as a place to rest and is currently a nesting site as well. Therefore, we actually only remove it reluctantly.

So far, we have cut down two of them from our garden. They simply became too big. In the fall – or at the latest when we get a patio cover – probably a few others will follow, which currently serve as a privacy screen to the neighbor (or are supposed to). These were planted too close to the property line by the previous owners of our house and are now also too wide. They almost extend half a meter over the fence to the neighbor’s side.
This hedge is also used as a resting place by numerous birds, and it is currently a breeding site. Therefore, we are actually reluctant to remove it.

What does the neighbor say? Does it bother him, or is he happy about the evergreen hedge?