As a landscape designer I was always told to draw a plant at 3 years growth.
When you buy a 5 gallon plant at the nursery and even a 10 gallon plant these are just baby plants and trees.
When the plants mature they can be 10 times the size of the 5 gallon plant.
So before buying a plant and placing it in your yard it is a good idea to drive around mature neighborhoods and look at the mature size of the plants you are considering.
That way you won't put a Ficus Nitida tree next to the house or a organ pipe cactus next to the side walk.
When I was with a tree trimming company, one of the clients wanted to know the cost of removing a Ficus Nitida tree from the front yard.
When I got to the house, I discovered that the Ficus was planted in the front courtyard only 5 feet from the front door.
The tree was now 50 feet and lifting the roof off the house.
Needless to say, the cost to remove the tree was going to be expensive because the crew would have to take extra precautions to prevent damage to the house just to remove the tree.
When I drove around the neighborhood, I found many more homes in that same situation.
These trees must have been planted by the builder.
So before you plant a tree or a bush, drive around several neighborhoods, specifically older neighborhoods and look at the mature plant of the one you are thinking about.
Talk to a local nursery.
Look up the plant on the internet to see what the mature size will be.
Do some research before you plant.