To be safe, check with your county extension service, they have lists of plants that are toxic to livestock. I'm not an expert, but there are lots of livestock in my area, (horses, cattle, etc.) and they eat almost everything that they can reach. Tree leaves, shrubs, everything. (I've noticed they don't eat the pawpaws, though.) So not sure if there is anything safe from getting eaten and isn't toxic if they do decide to munch. How about cedar trees? Lots of people around here have them. I don't know if they are toxic, but the deer won't eat them, so they must not taste good.

thank you...I think the ASPCA's list on toxic plants is pretty good. To be honest, I am not even worried about what is toxic to dogs, as our dogs don't really roam the property without supervision. I guess if worse comes to worse, we can put wire mesh up in front of whatever (non toxic) hedge we plant in the paddock until it gets going. I notice the horses don't mess with the huge, grown up arecas, only the new ones we planted. Maybe the new ones are more tender?

I will look up cedar trees, just wondering...do those form a hedge? I don't want anything that grows tall and will not form complete privacy.

Thanks for the response! :)

Yes Cedars get tall, sorry didn't know you didn't want trees. How about Blue Point Junipers or some other Juniper? There are different ones that get different sizes. Ficus can get very large if they don't get knocked back by freezing temps, wouldn't go there if I were you. I would be afraid that the normal privacy hedges such as Viburnum, Silver-thorn, etc. would be eaten by the animals. And so many of the vines are toxic. No matter what you decide, if you have a long fence-line, it's going to cost a lot to buy enough plants, not matter what they are, I can't believe the price of plants nowadays!

ack! I am stressing. I will look up Junipers, too. Thank you! Looks like we will have to search for non toxic and then put that mesh/chicken wire stuff up to keep the horses off the plants, at least in the very beginning.

BTW, I am in SoFla...western Broward, to be exact.

I agree, the price of plants is CRAZY! Just like seafood...why is that stuff so expensive here in FLA? Just doesn't seem right.

Thanks again, rita and I will keep checking back to see if anyone else has input or suggestions.

Carol-forgive me...as I am a complete gardening novice. There seems to be a zillion types of viburnum. Which type in particular should I look into? I am in SoFla. I started googling but got overwhelmed and confused, LOL. I am hoping I will find an answer soon because I want these hedges to start growing NOW! :) Thanks!

We have a row of sea grapes planted for their quick growth and ability to provide privacy. I have no complaints, but I do not mind a natural look. When it gets very very cold they do drop some leaves and thin out a little. We leave the leaves where they lie and let them naturally degrade and add compost and nutrients to the soil. The fallen leaves act as a very effective mulch against weeds. When they are in bloom so to speak they do drop grapes. However, we have a relatively micro tiny yard (hence the need for privacy) and none of that has bothered me. No matter how drastically I prune them back, they take it well. I have found them to be robust, tolerant, pest resistant, and highly effective for privacy. If you can prove to your satisfaction that the plants themselves and the grapes are not toxic to your animals (and as far as I know the grapes can even be used by humans to make jelly) I would highly recommend them.

ohh, cocoa...you are selling me on the seagrapes. I love a natural look...I also love a very "Florida" look. I had two HUGE seagrape trees growing up, I used to eat the berries all the time. I do remember my dad having to rake the leaves regularly, but I do think that might be because of the size of the trees. They were both at least 20 feet high...and very wide, also.

In the cold, when they thin out...do you lose a lot of privacy? Are they thin only for a short time?

I really want to make a decision soon. Thanks to everyone for the input!

Even with the record cold and freezes this winter we still had some privacy from them, just not full thick screening like we have the rest of the year. They bounced back much quicker than any other deciduous plants around here too. I would also say consider Coco Plum. As far as I know it is a denser hedge, won't grow too tall, and again, the fruit is not known to be toxic and people do eat it. Not sure about toxicity of the leaves. Slower grower, longer time to maturity.

So, I'd say moderate on the privacy loss, but very very short time until they thicken right back out again with healthy leaves.

Would horses eat the grapes? Would it be ok for them?

11yrs later.... what did you go with?

We're currently researching for the same situation. Clusia vs Areca palms. I'm looking into cocoplum.

@ Kim Savino - I know that it's been 10 months but I hope you're not going to go with the Clusia They are listed as being toxic...What did you go with