I've been looking for clematis armandii. Any of you know who has it? Rascal offered cuttings, which I will try also. Fluffyflowers, let us know what you decide. All your choices sound great. Rosie, in Sugar Hill

First thanks for all the replies. I will google mentioned fence types to get a better idea. Keep the kid in the back yard is one of the but not the only reason for the fence/hedge. Our daughter actually is not an adventure type - so even if we have a row of small tree and tell her to stay inside, she will do so. BUT with an enclosed fence, it is more a peace of mind to say maybe we can leave her alone in the backyard while we hop between in house and out. We also want some privacy - there are 3 houses on the south side of the road plus the passed cars. We also thought about put a fence and then grow some vine (like Ivy) to climb on the fence - but read about the fence will soon be deteriorated by the plant. The lot is not large - it's only about 0.3 acre. So an informal hedge might not feasible plus an informal hedge looks unmaintained if did not planned right. >>What kind of trees are they? Honestly I do not know. I only know the tree on the top left(North west) corner is an evergreen tree, others are deciduous. They are many years trees and very tall >>Do you like the look of less formal hedges that are made up of a variety of different species? Thought about that too, but... reason see above >>Would you consider a picket fence or other open, decorative fence rather than the solid gray boring wall you might be considering? Since privacy also a consideration, we need to plant tree beside the open fence too. So cost is also a factor to consider >>What direction is north? Top side is north >>Ignoring the kid, what would you do? Still want to put up a fence or tree hedge for privacy, more like tree hedge want more green around >>In the long run a hedge is not practical You mean it will become a duty you might hated to keep the hedge looking good? Unless you enjoy doing it? >>In time, it would become a huge, boring green 'wall' that would hide the house. Hah, I never thought about that. I would not think it will hide the house though, it won't be that huge, will it? >>Fence line A would not be a good choice because it will 'enclose' the house and make it look prison-like. You want the beauty of the home, and not the fence itself, to be the most important prominent visual element I honestly did not think about that, (enclose the house), it is a good point though. But on another hand, I did not think the side view of our house is that pretty (maybe I need to start appreciated it from now on) and I wanted more acre in my (now fenced) backyard so that I can put more craps in there :) >>Because you are on a corner lot, I think the south and southeast corners should be more open and inviting than a tall fence/hedge line would allow good point here too. And I think that's the reason the lot 3 did not have any fence on the south and west side. But that's the only property that does not have fence, all others (lot 4, 5, 6 (to the right side of 5) and my north neighbor) have fenced yard >>Just enclose the upper lefthand quadrant as a play area for your child. That would not work as it is too small, we need the whole back yard to throw balls and to run What the choices of trees for a hedge/ as plants for a boundary - I am not very good at tree names, I saw a lot property with nice tree hedges but never cared to know what kind of trees that they are using. From aesthetics perspective, we think hedge would be much better. But not sure about from cost and improve the property value perspective, which one is the winner. Again, thanks a lot

You might consider a rich grey for the front door that has plum undertones. I think white railing would be great- your trim, the dormers, etc. are all white, and so it would work well. Not sure what your total plans are for the railing so perhaps you can elaborate, but the right railing could be a great addition both practically for your daughter, and visually. I can understand your excitement. Looks like a great home!

Thank you all for the comments and suggestions. No volcanos: the maples were planted high, which I don't like, because I'm constantly resetting mulch when it washes off. I will definitely be adding some form of beds around the maples, to even things out a little, as well as give new plants better soil to root in. The ground is fairly dense with clay here. We already have a locus tree at the base of the deck. You can barely see the edge of it in the pic above, but it's there to someday give afternoon shade to the deck. Will be raising the canopy on that one soon. Included another pic, showing the locust tree. Don't think we have room for another full tree. We haven't started trimming the maples higher, because they are still by themselves. Nothing to compete with. I'm open to gradually raising the canopy if we start growing other things below them. A solid hedge of Hicks is the best solution to hide the fence, but would like to soften that wall up with less formal plantings in front of it. My wife specifically said "no hedge", but then she's given me no other ideas. :) Trying to add an 8-10' evergreen between the first 2 trees is the real design problem. I would never think to put a tall-ish evergreen there for any other reason, and I'm not willing to plant something stupid/inappropriate/ugly just for a little privacy. I would really love for our neighbor to plant a few arborvitae next to his hot tub. That would solve multiple problems!