i have never had any snow or ice problems with de groots ...

also.. NEVER plant a monoculture ... one problem.. and you could use them all ...

besides.. you are all set.. already have two picked out ....

also ... from the aesthetic point of view .... 60 feet one one thing.. even two... would be rather artificial ... you might want to see if you cant find other things to fill in some spots ...

too many peeps think of a sight block as needing to be a solid curtain ... it really doesnt need to be ... openings thru such.. giving you a depth of view ... which can be very interesting ...

you might also look for plants outside the conifer world... just for something else to look at ... e.g. fall color.. spring flowers.. etc ...

any chance power lines above..are an issue???

a pic might get you other suggestions ... words are pretty.. but pix speak volumes ....

the fence could be problematic creating shade half the day ...

ken

I personally think thuja is over-planted. The Thuja would be a nice lime green and the Juniperus virginianus would be a darker green, but should have interesting blue-gray berries. Any issue with road salt?

Don't know these cultivars. (Artificially tall skinny cultivars may have more issues) but neither species should have any issue with your weather. I'm in zone 6 and both species thrive here...they've survived hurricanes and ice storms that have caused other trees to lose branches.

In your zone, I'd also think about throwing in some American Holly (ilex opaca) for variety.

While Ken and I often do manage to agree on a variety of topics, one single hedge planting is not the tableau for "species diversity". That is a real concern but on a much larger scale. A hedge, almost by definition, is a single species. I'd not worry about that little factoid at all.

+oM

I believe Ken's theory is "don't plant a hedge, plant a mixed border because that way if a disease knocks out one plant there will still be others." (And if you do have to replace one plant, the smaller younger replacement won't stick out so much...and it will let you showcase more different kinds of fun exotic dwarf conifers). Not really biodiversity in an ecological sense. Partly this is an aesthetic decision...do you like the look of mixed borders?

Thanks for comments everyone. Usually I'm all for a mixed border, but in our case we only have a 5-ft swath to work with, and some fairly unattractive tallish buildings we'd like to hide. I suspect for something that narrow, to get the height we want we will eventually end up having to trim the sides- it might look goofy to have different plants in that situation. We're not in the house yet (it's under renovation), but I'll post pics when I get up there next! laceyvail, I'm in the same situation- these particular cultivars aren't easy to find! Anyone have a recommendation for an evergreen nursery in the Philadelphia area?

The Taylors do stay exceedingly narrow. If you only have a 5 ft swath, 3 plants should be sufficient. Bite the bullet and order from Sooner.

Agree-the concept of a hedge is largely single-species while a shrub border-exactly the term I wished to bring up here this morning- is very often a mixed assemblage of species. To my way of thinking and training, the latter is not a hedge, and since that was where this convo started, that's where I was taking it.

+oM

Another Thuja option is 'Malonyana'. Monrovia online sells them and will ship them to your local garden center that carries their products. 'Malonyana' is the same shape as 'Taylor' juniper.

For 60' you'd need (20) plants minimum spaced every three feet. I'd buy (5) extra and plant somewhere for replacements should any in your screen fail.

'Malonyana' will catch on in the United States. I was surprised to find Monrovia was offering them. Occasionally, I'll see 'Malonyana Aurea' offered at high end online nurseries, but this is the first time I'm seeing the solid green cultivar being offered.

Monrovia: 'Malonyana' Arborvitae

Dax

One of the HUGE advantages of the juniper over the arborvitae ( at least for many of us) is that the junipers are highly deer resistant. Not so the arbs.