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snappleg

Privacy fence in Arizona - zone 9 (w photos)

snappleg
14 years ago

Hello everyone,

It's time to do something about our horrible looking backyard. We have 36 ft on both sides of the house, which we want to block.

I went to our local Moon Valley nursery and as soon I mentioned "privacy", they took me directly to Ficus Nitida. It sounded great in the beginning: it's an evergreen, it is very dense and it is on 50% sale for $200 ($400 w delivery, 1 year insurance & planting). When I came home, I started reading about this plant and found out that

1. it needs a lot of water

2. it can die during winter frost (happened in our area in 2007, if I'm not mistaken)

3. if not watered properly, can develop huge destructive roots

Moon Valley nursery employees didn't offer me any alternatives, they are pushing this plant very hard, and I'm afraid to spend so much money on something which may die if the temperature drops below certain level. Also, even if some trees will recover, some may not, which will leave me with holes in our privacy fence. On a top of it, it's water hungry, and we live in Arizona.

I want some tall shrubs or trees, which will grow fast and block the view completely. What are my alternatives? Thank you!

Also, I would prefer to have this view blocked year-round (currently, one side of our backyard is blocked with community trees, but they shed in winter).I believe our zone is 9 (different web sites show from 8B to 9-10, our zip is 85234)

Also, Moon Valley's employee told that I have 2,5 months to plant Ficus Nitida. I've never planted anything in my life, but I though it was getting too hot for planting any big trees. Later on found some info on planting in AZ--> www.gardeninginarizona.com, and they state the following for April: "Planting: Except for bedding plants, your summer planting should be finished now: summer really starts in May in Phoenix, so it is your very last chance. It is the best month for tropical plants like Bougainvillea, Lantana, Citrus, etc"

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