Privacy ideas for downward sloping front yard (pic)

16 years ago

My lot slopes downward from the street and I would like to have some privacy when playing with my son on the front lawn.

I was thinking of planting a row of something evergreen about 3' high about 4' back from the curb, with perennials or colorful groundcover in front of it.

My first thought was to put in a row of boxwoods, but I'd prefer a "leafier" plant.

Any other ideas or plants that would solve this problem?

I am in NJ, zone 7 and this spot gets mostly sun with some shade. Thanks!

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Comments (4)

laceyvail 6A, WV
16 years ago
You might get better help at the shrubs forum.
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isabella__MA
16 years ago
JB,
3 or 4 feet high will not afford much privacy unless you are hunched over right next to the shrub line picking weeds or picking up a ball. An expectation for privacy in your front yard seems to be a tall order to fill. Your current plant layout doesn't provide screening views from the side views.

The rule of thumb for privacy is a six-ft high fence or planting, but having that in your front yard would seem to be anti-social. Privacy outside is somewhat hard to do in the suburbs with neighbors so close together and two-story houses. When I go outside I don't expect privacy, and I don't do anything outside I would be embarrassed to be seen doing. Okay I sing to my girls, but that's only embarrassing if you were to hear me! I find total privacy (meaning no views to the outside of my yard) to be unsettling, because I like to look out of my yard to see what's happening. A screen of fence or plants with select breaks allows for viewing the outside world from inside the confines of the yard, but any passerby would have to be more deliberate in intruding to view into your yard.

I would think, if you are using the front for playing then, what you really need is more security. A fence or planting to keep kiddos, toys, and bikes from leaving the yard. What I have noticed in my neighborhood is that if cars can see my kids in the front, then they tend to slow down and drive more carefully.
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Unless there's vegetation at the border of your property that can't be seen in the photo, I believe developing a fine shrub border should be your goal. If you think along these lines, you'll be considering a variety of conifers, deciduous, spring, summer, fall interest plants. I also think adding some great grasses would be fun, and children would enjoy them , too. If you design with family in mind, your youngster(s) could enjoy nooks you create with your vegetation. What I'm saying is spend some time making a plan that reflects all your goals: a sense of privacy or "real" privacy (a mixed border vs. a row of evergreens). Are you going to stay in this house "forever" or for 5 years? That makes a difference in your expenditures and whether you are gardening for resale value or primarily for esthetics and your pleasure. Lots of places will do a plan for free if you buy the plants. However, usually you'll get only the most commonplace plant suggestions that includes what they carry in stock. If you decide to "plan" in more detail, let us know and we can be more expansive with our ideas. There are people who have already responded to your post that know nearly every shrub that grows.
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I am unclear as to your question. Are you looking for general ways to turn it into garden space? Is water an issue? This is an entryway designed by Michele Derviss, a San Francisco area designer. The house is just visible in the upper right side of the photo, and the main entry is the middle of the left side opposite the stairs. If water is an issue, you could make the path that parallels the front of the house permeable with a drain under it that diverts water away from the front of the house by channeling it over toward the side. Here are couple of other ones from the same designer: Notice on this next one the center drain in the patio and how the patio slopes toward the drain:
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if hapypaws meant thuja green giants .... be clear.. that you do not have room for those .... period ... [your welcome hapy] if you want to throw in some vertical aspects.. look into degroots spire .... comparatively thinner in the years to come .... https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Thuja+occidentalis+%27DeGroot%27s+Spire%27&t=ffcm&iax=images&ia=images my first thought.. along the garage.. was also ... drag those ugly bushes toward the fence.. and make the walkway along the building ... though im not sure as to ID .. and the cost/benefit of moving those things .... the spires might look better along the fence ... and give you a wider walkway ..... you probably have to get the lawnmower thru that space???? .. is it a rider??? as to general planting.. see link ... note the timing aspect .... planting is an early spring thing.. not the heat of summer thing .... so either get it done early.. or wait until fall ... for best chance at success .... or bifurcate your your plan ... https://sites.google.com/site/tnarboretum/Home/planting-a-tree-or-shrub why are you fixated on holly??? .. nothing wrong with them.. you just mention them many times ... plz give us a more specific big city name .... if you plan on joining us more often.. its best to go to your members page and add you location.. as you note most of us have ... it matters ... you too hapy!!! is snow load damage really a zone 7 issue???? lastly ... do not plant so far down the driveway.. that you have problems with seeing down the road when backing out .... ken ps: whats the tree out from the porch toward the monster tree??? ... how far is it from the porch??? .. and while your are at it.. whats the totem pole tree and whats the deal with that?????
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That picture brings me a sense of instant happiness, haha! Thank you for taking the time to throw that together! What types of plants are those? And is the pic at least relatively to scale...as in I could fit those in that area? Fence to driveway is ~13 feet width. I guess we could stop the line of trees a little short of the street and at least see a little bit of our fence poking through...
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ally_ld
16 years ago
Because of the style of your house, I would not like to see a straight hedge, I feel you need to soften the straight lines in your house and a hedge will not accomplish that it will make the lines even more prominent. It would enhance your home if you could change the square lawn with curved beds and use a variety of shrubs that compliment each other. IMO you should really try to stay away from a trimmed square hedge. I am big on natural growing, plants with an attractive growth habit that maybe needs occasional pruning of a few selective branches but never sees an electric hedge shearing tool.
Not knowing future plans or what the rest of your property looks like it is hard to make design suggestions so I hope I gave you some things to consider.
The pictures below is a young mixed border to help explain my thoughts. I think planting from the street in for your view from the house is more important then foundation shrubs that are mostly viewed by others.
Ally
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karinl
16 years ago
That's nice, Ally.

JB, you probably aren't out there much in winter so maybe a selection of deciduous shrubs would work. They are not so dense as to create claustrophobia in summer, can be pruned to be as airy as you like, might attain a height anywhere from 4-8 feet, and are more open in winter when low light levels might make an actual hedge seem overwhelmingly dark.

KarinL
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Privacy ideas for downward sloping front yard (pic)

Comments (4)

laceyvail 6A, WV

isabella__MA

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ally_ld

karinl

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