I second what Ginny has said. (Shrub borders can be wonderful places for kids to play - secret houses under the branches are a great memory of my childhood.) You can go the route of a very basic fence like wire mesh with shrubs in a staggered row of shrubbery on either side of the fence to camouflage it and provide a thicker hedge and more privacy than a single row of shrubs. Or you can choose a decorative fence like a picket fence with shrubs on your side of it and perhaps lower maintenance perennials on the outside to give it a garden feel, or even just grass (though that will involve mulching or trimming around the fence.) In my experience early fall is the best time to plant shrubs. The soil is warm which keeps roots growing, particularly if you mulch after planting to help hold the warmth in and prevent freeze-thaw cycles through the winter, but the air is getting cooler so that there is less moisture getting pulled out of the plant. I have planted both deciduous and evergreen shrubs in the fall with 100% success. Our spring tends to be rather short and summer heat is stressful on the plants if I plant in spring. I find that they take longer to adjust and more work on my part as far as keeping an eye on water. As far as the hedge itself, you can choose to do all the plants the same which in my view tends to look more formal and a bit less friendly to the outside world. Or you can choose a palette of several plants that you like the look of together and use several of each along the length of the bed. Think about the color, size, and texture of foliage as you plan. http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/neweng/msg1208322318994.html The link above will take you to a thread with some photos of a bed I put together to serve as a boundary between a utility area and other parts of the yard which is the less formal mixed type. It's probably not as dense as you will want since I don't need privacy and wanted to mix in some perennials, at least until the woody plants got larger, but could be planted closer to make it denser sooner. I used Pagoda dogwood (Cornus alternifolia), 'Fat Albert' blue spruce, two arborvitaes (Thuja 'Techny' and Thuja 'Sunkist'), ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolious Coppertina ), several rhododendrons, several Hydrangea paniculata ('Quickfire', 'PinkyWinky', and 'Pink Diamond') and shadbush/serviceberry (Amelanchier sp.) I like a mix of evergreen (conifers and broadleafed) and some of the denser deciduous plants like ninebark, forsythia, or some of the twiggier high bush blueberries which even without leaves aren't very see-through. I also planted some clematis to grow up through the shrubs for more flowers. The link below will show you a bunch of other mixed shrub hedgerows. I wasn't too successful at finding photos of borders of one type of plant that hadn't been seriously trimmed/pruned. Here is a link that might be useful: Shrub border Google

I had three Annabelles planted Last July (14 months ago). I had the guy replace all of them this early spring because they looked like crap by the end of the summer, and failed to leaf out this spring. He told me they tend to "struggle" until they are established. Fast forward to now. They are planted in full sun (south, southwestern exposure). Add that to the extreme lack of rain we had this summer. It has been tough on them (and on me because of the constant watering). I think they look kind of crappy. But I am hopeful that next summer will not as hot and dry here in Michigan. Here is what they look like now. On the flip side, 3 Little Limes were planted in my front yard last summer and get full morning sun. They are huge (40"x40" each) and beautiful after only one year.

Water them!!!! Not misting, but use a hose, let the water run until it puddles and then come back and do it again. Dig down in the dirt about one foot or so and check the soil after watering. The water has to be down to the roots, not on the leaves. I would think that you start with the one on the left and then just get weary and give less water to the rest of the row. Or, the soil is not absolutely level or consistent and is running down to the one that looks good. If these were my plants and I wanted to save them, I would dig them up, soak for at least 12 hours (yes, 12 hours!!!) run water into the hole where you take them out and see if it runs through quickly or pools in the hole. This is a really old way of checking for drainage - but it works. Don't worry about root rot - I have soaked hydrangeas for weeks in the same bucket and they are fine. Don't fertilize! Fertilizer is not Gator-Aid for your plants. It is like giving a sick baby a huge bowl of ice cream. When you dig them up, wash off the roots and look for problems like insects or critters eating them from under the soil or the roots circling around from being pot bound at the nursery or box store . I will bet that when you dig they up, the roots will be really dry. After soaking, plant them back or pot them up, put in mostly shade and make sure they stay moist. Good Luck

@NHBabs z4b-5a NH Thanks for following up. You definetly have some good things to consider, and I have seen you highlight that that Debroah prunes every branch in the other thread. However, I do have to point out that Proven Winners who breads Limelights, indicates the average size is 6-8', https://www.provenwinners.com/plants/hydrangea/limelight-panicle-hydrangea-hydrangea-paniculata That being said the thread started by "unprofessional" also highlights how this is not always the case and these shrubs can get crazy big. However unprofessional also readily admits they have not pruned the Limelights he/she has posted on, so it make sense to me her situation falls into that sweet spot of being in advantegous zone, with no pruning and the right balance of sun, to make her Limelights explosively big. Which leads me right back to why I am struglling with what to do! Like anything in life there is "laws of average". and I think most limelights fall into 6-8ft window and therforee it seem like somewhere beewteen 3.5-5ft spacing is resonable. It;s just a matter of what the magic number is for that individuals speific growing conditions. With my zone, and amount of sun it feels like thats some where close to 4'. I did buy #5 limelights size so I dont think I will need to wait as long for the hedge look to unfold. But I also want to be thoghtful of how big these can get! For those following along here is a youtue video where she went with 4ft spacing. Personally I was expecting these to look more hedge like after 3 years, but also noticed the amount of sun she likely gets is less, being bewteen two houses. Again I think alot of the 10+ examples are the right mix of ideal growing conditions. 2:11 mark she discusses spacing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QA7TO7FtUk  I am happy to start another hedge thread with annual pictures for my jouney so we can all learn together! Would love to hear any other feedback