Melissa, broom is a pain in the neck. I used to love seeing it by the roadsides driving through the Italian landscape; so bright, so perfumed! But I think that is the only good context for it, in a way. It would be OK where it is on my property, if it didn't attract those effing beetles so wildly; in fact, IMO, the beetles exist precisely to keep the broom from taking over the entire world, since they suck the flowers and render them infertile. But the beetles are engineered to be wildly attracted to the colour yelow; that is, the stamens of ALL flowers,and due to the geography (or morphology???) of my land (sharply sloping down from the rose garden into the broom field and below that, oak woods,with a south-west orientation),having broom down there is like rolling out the red carpet for the beetles (well, the yellow carpet). Broom has strong, fibrous tap roots that can push their way through/ between rocks, etc. I think the only way I can do anything with this area is by hacking up the ground with my pick; I can't see just planting baby trees amongst that thuggish broom and hoping them to survive.Also, I'd have to water the babies in their first year, and I think the broom would just flourish all the more. Probably I'll try a mix of things and see what works best,but it will be necessary to work the soil before I plant anything. I probably should saw down all the broom in the area I wish to start cultivating, and maybe put black plastic bags over the stumps of the ones that are too deep rooted to dig up; for shade it might be better to rig up something artificial. I don't think your land was as abused as mine was; this area in question has been so badly eroded; I have to hunt out spots where it will be possible to dig down deep enough to start stuff. The rose garden area was similar when I started about 15 years ago,but I am not going to lug all this heavy clay, etc. all the way down there. To plant the first Leylandii I prepared an area,digging out rocks, putting in organic matter and kitty litter, etc. I'll certainly be watering it in it's first year at least! but the thing about Leylandii is that it was cheap; it's as tall as me and cost me all of 13 euros. So, if with some effort I can get it to establish,I might have a nice start.The thing is, even on the subject of drought resistance, people's experiences and opinions vary greatly with ALL plants, as far as I can see. To me,for example, roses are very drought-resistant once established, but many, many people heartily disagree with this opinion. So I will see what this Leylandii does before I make any decisions. Criteria for a nurse crop would have to be : economic ,(not to say, cheap) and fast-growing. But even for that, I will absolutely have to work on that soil ; as it is now, nothing new can start growing there, I think,except baby broom and maybe brambles (if they manage to compete with the broom)...bart

I am in Zone 5 but I have been researching the heck out of ground covering lately. It has become an additive behaviour to be honest. After much reserach I determined that one of the hardiest groundcovering is the VINCA MINOR/ Periwinkle. I bought some from the Home Depot that was already potted. But then I realized that even at a couple of $$$ it can get expensive fast. So guess what I did believe it or not..... I hit EBAY and plugged in Vinca Minor just for the heck of it. One of the many store advertised on Ebay had the best offer I had yet to see on line much less than Jackson & Perkins and other web stores).... Vinca Minor 250 roots for $12.49. YES you heard me 250 vinca roots grown in the field will be sealed, packaged safely and mailed to me for about $13 (gotta hold off on the Starbucks for the day..lol). As a matter of fact I ordered a total of 500 to split with mom. We plan to use them as LAWN SUBSTITUTES. I have a tree with outgrowing roots that will not allow grass to grow. So now I am forced to have a perrenial groundcovering. I say all this to say go for it! Try the vinca minor, get the best price (don't overlook ebay stores), and plant away. Other good websites were: classygroundcovers.com; wilsonbrosnursey.com; michiganbulbs.com, dutchgardens.com; blueskynursery.com, plantdelights.com, waltersgardens.com, northbranchnursery.com; gardenheights.com; jacksonandperkins.com; colorscapesgreenhouse.com Another way is just plug in the question and just see what pops up. Wish me luck with the vinca minor/periwinkle and keep me posted on your status.

Might want to try Rus aromatica 'Gro-low' (selection of native sumac). It stays a couple of feet high at most but spreads well. Leaves are small, shiny, dark green; fall color is a nice red. I have a patch in my native corner, and it has filled in very nicely without any care except in the first year. Another possibility is northern sea oats. You are welcome to come dig some out of my garden, they spread prolifically and deer don't eat them. Nice seed heads in fall, strong root systems.

Mods, please feel free to delete previous post with pics, I did not see the size restrictions before. Sorry. Here are some pics of fence and patio.