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selection of evergreen tree or shrub

16 years ago

hello gardeners---We are trying to decide what tree or shrub is best for this situation. About 40 feet from the house,we have a line of 9 red cedars in east west orientation--about 130 feet across the line(they are cramped for space)---years ago a lazy family member thought of an easy way to get rid of a few weeds growing under the trees. a herbacide was sprayed under the trees, the lower brances took 2-5 years to finally die and the needles all fell off these branches about 4 foot up from ground-i finally got permission to cut them out--now there is a space where these cedar boughs used to cover--now a busy gravel road is visible,and there is certain loss of privacy

--my Mom wants that space "filled"--there is pasture behind the line of cedars,with a sunny southern exposure, slopeing downhill towards the road---so we can block the created space from behind

--There is a sense of urgency, my Mom is 83 years old, very spry, but whatever We put in should something that grows fast. We cannot afford pro tree co. and tree spade, but i can dig & prep however many good holes needed with nice loam and old barn soils-along with whatever soil conditioner will help kick start these new trees/shrubs. Additionally, i can provide water for them by hose this year, drip irragation next year.

---the area to be planted is wide-100 yards wide, and slopes downhill from the house, so whatever tree/shrub we plant only nees to achieve 3-5 foot of growth height to block out the view of the created space under the cedar trees--(being redundant hopefully to maintain clarity).

could someone please recommend a good evergreen(type)tree or shrub that will do the job.

thank you and have a great season

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Comment (1)

Dibbit
16 years ago
Hollies come to mind, as do Thujas. I am reluctant to suggest berberis ssp., as various ones are now listed as invasive in some areas. Can spruces cope with your climate? Pines will get very tall, in time, and then are bare at their feet, so not them. Juniper ssp.? Will pyracantha grow in your area - it will take shearing into a hedge, or can grow unchecked, but you might want to check invasiveness? Clumping bamboo? I would suggest yews only if no livestock have or will ever have access to the area - it's poisonous to cattle and horses, although deer don't seem to be bothered.

They're not evergreen, but the osier-twig or yellow- or red-twig dogwoods might do, they are thick-growing. And if you cut them to the ground every few years, they would stay thick. Any of the native shrubs that make thickets would be good - the mower could keep them in check where you didn't want them. Forsythia comes to mind also, or one of the native roses - NOT multiflora!!! Certainly the forsythia could be had inexpensively enough by taking cuttings from an established plant in the summer - water well. It could be "planted" as thickly as you wanted, and had cuttings for, so should fill in quickly. The roses might do the same.
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Spacing generally refers to the mature width of the plant (and most likely, but not neccessarily the roots), whereas average size indicates the height of the plant. (if you're not talking trees, avg. size might even indicate the avg. height you can keep the plant pruned) Trees either have shallow roots which spread (think crepe myrtle), or a tap root (a main root which goes straight down)-(like pines). Some evergreen trees can get huge! You will need to post your planting zone in order for anyone to let you know which evergreen tree they would recommend.
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hey liz.. royal oak eh?? [from your members page] .. grew up in livonia... and bought my first house there ... first.. refer to the link .... for a suggestion as how to proceed ... linds ... did it right.. by catching us.. when we were bored out of our minds.. prior to the weather breaking ... note the pix we requested.. as well as having her define what her goals were ... and they did not end up being what she started with ... and its your use of common terms.. that is confusing you .. and us.. as to where to go with this ... e.g... evergreens... well.. that covers a wide range of things ... i THINK you are talking about conifers ... if you are.. that is where linds started .... and that is usually the backbones of the front of ones house ... but there are many other plants that are .. in essence.. evergreen ... so you need to define what you are talking about ... and technically.. conifers are NOT shrubs.. though i also called them such for decades .... but it is not helpful in defining where we want to go .... BTW .. your link doesnt work.. and that pic is not going to be helpful to anyone defining a plan ... and take a walk some evening.. and snap a pic or two.. of what other peeps have done with the front of their houses.. to help you define what you like.. and give us some guidance as to where you want to go ... you are spot on with the foundation ... when i had my first house in livonia.. i learned that 3 feet AT THE FOUNDATION .. should be left blank ... so i could get a ladder in there.. to do gutters.. paint.. xmas lights.. window washing.. etc ... and if you agree with that.. then you should 'see' that your bed is horribly out of configuration .... lol .. i just glanced up.. and i see the neighbor still has the ugly old improperly planted conifer .... and the root of your problem might be this forum.. but you never know ...... the conifer forum is much more active.. than the shrub forum.. and not every one of the peeps there.. come thru here ... so if this post dwindles.. try over there ... my best suggestion ... is to define and build some great beds.. for planting in fall .. the next proper season for planting conifers .. and trees.. as i doubt you can properly build those beds in time ... you simply should not plant such.. in the heat of summer ... but .... once you define the beds.. and add some of your annuals.. and perennials.. then we can get the backbones in place in fall ... of my 600 conifers.. about half came in the mail ... and that is how you get truly unique things.. rather than JUST what the bigboxstore offers ... well.. that and a budget.. lol .. of course .. as compared to me in adrian mi ... you have some great large upscale nurseries in the area including bordines .. english gardens.. etc ... so.. get us some better pix.. that perhaps we can photoshop ... and lets try to find some words that explain where you want to go .. oh.. i would expand that bed to about 10 feet from the house.. which would make it only 7 feet deep to work with .. it would NOT be straight across.. and we would have to figure out how to deal with what i will guess is an arcing walkway .... [any chance you want to replace that with brick as a part of the process] ... and i would insure.. that some part of the plants introduce a vertical element.. as compared to your 1950's metro detroit ranch ... good luck ken Here is a link that might be useful: link
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