Natural Privacy Bushes
Eric
5 years ago
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Patricia Colwell Consulting
5 years agoK Laurence
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoRelated Discussions
Privacy bushes, living fence?
Comments (1)hey kim.. welcome to gW ... hit the link to the perfect conifer for your space .... shrubs.. are not going to work.. it is an all-inclusive term that many newbies use... but it mostly means big huge old plants with woody stems that flower ... like lilacs ... if you are looking for something evergreen ... meaning it doesnt lose its leaves.. you are mostly talking about conifers here in MI .. [BTW i am in adrian MI ...] and read carefully the stuff about single leaders.. and starting smallish ... its important ... come back often.. ken Here is a link that might be useful: link...See MoreTall Bushes for Privacy
Comments (2)Burning bush is also highly invasive. It is a prohibited plant in Mass. It's hard to match their fall color, but they are an otherwise kind of ugly shrub (IMO). I am working on long wide privacy borders on both sides of the yard. They are mixed evergreen and deciduous and have mostly natives but there are some non-natives. I've got Dogwoods, American hazelnut, Arborvitae, Hemlock, Rhododendrons, Pieris, Spiraea, Lilacs and others included. Grey dogwood is an attractive native, fast growing, vase shaped shrub with okay fall color (mauve orangey tones) and a big plus is that when they make berries in the summer, there is a flurry of bird activity that love the berries. They don't like it super dry though. Japanese maple is very slow growing. But keep in mind that any fast growing shrub will probably need pruning to keep it under control in limited space....See MorePictures of natural privacy fences
Comments (6)A mix of evergreens, deciduous and flowering/berry-producing shrubs has been used for many years, listed as a tapestry hedge. Try googling, or do a search on the Trees or Shrubs forums. If you want this hedge to contain dogs, of whatever size or breed, be aware that it will need to be backed by a fence of some kind. Shrubs can develop bare spots at the bottoms, and dogs will crawl under to find cool dirt to lie on in the heat of the summer, never mind hunting out the birds/mice/squirrels, etc. that would make their homes and passageways in the hedge. One of the things you need to decide is if you want to let the hedge grow naturally in its varying widths and heights, or if you want to do any pruning, whether a clipping several times a year, an annual spring "haircut", or just to take out wayward branches. The last you will probably have to do anyway, since the plants won't have read the books to see how they "should" grow, and will grow as they will. Based on that decision, you can choose plants with an eye to how wide they will mature at, as well as how tall. If you want a dense hedge, you will have to shorten some varieties of shrubs at least once a year in the spring as it grows, to create a dense hedge with low branching. Some shrubs will do this naturally, but some will shoot out long branches, and these are better shortened to make more dense branching. Of the above suggested plants, I would go along with any of them, possibly not the vitex, since both of mine (different cultivars) seem to be very open at the bottom, from the time they were planted, out of 1-gal. pots (but then, I don't prune them to speak of). Others would be more hollies, including winterberry (male plant needed); the Little Girl series of deciduous magnolias; camellias, clethra; other viburnums; shrub roses; loropetalums, both green and red-leaf; possibly some of the Hinoki cypress cultivars; and possibly either Thuja 'Smaragd/Emerald Beauty/Emerald Green' which seem to be the same cultivar under different names, growing to 12-15' x 2-3.5' or else 'de Groot's Spire', which will grow to 8-12' x 2-2.5'. If you don't have one, look for a copy of the Southern living Garden Book - it has lists of suitable plants for hedging in the front, and tells which plants will grow well where....See MoreFast Growing privacy bushes in mostly shaded area.
Comments (4)I grow arrow-wood viburnum as a privacy hedge. The best thing about arrow-wood is that they grow very upright and they get about 10 feet tall. They require no maintenance because they are the perfect shape and size to function as a tall living fence. You may have to remove some suckers, but I have not found them to sucker prolifically. So far, after 8 years, I have never felt the need to remove any suckers as they are insignificantly growing under the base of the hedgerow. I have my arrow-woods in a shady location where they get very little dabble sun. They are not as dense in the shade, but, depending what you are trying to screen, for most things they should be dense enough. I'm screening out a neighbor. I'm not sure if I would use this same plant if it were a busy highway. Remember, shrubs grown in the shade will always be more open in density, in spite of this, I've found that this shrub is still very effective as a screen. Be careful not to plant only one clone of arrow-wood, as they will produce less berries. Viburnums need cross-pollination of uniquely different DNA to produce berries in abundance. Depending on the length of your privacy fence, you may just need one other uniquely different arrow-wood in close proximity to achieve cross-pollination. Arrow-wood grows beautiful sky blue berry clusters that the birds love! I have not found the berries to be messy, as they are tiny and firm rather than juicy. Species arrow-wood grown from seed will always produce abundant berries, because they are not cloned vegetatively in the trade. For the most upright variety, choose carefully as some varieties are bred to be fuller. Arrow-wood is named so, due to it's straight twigs which were were ideal for making arrows. As a bonus, arrow-wood provides a decent color show in the fall....See MoreEric
5 years agoSkip1909
5 years agoYardvaark
5 years agoNHBabs z4b-5a NH
5 years agoEric
5 years agoyvonnecmartin
5 years agoNHBabs z4b-5a NH
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoSkip1909
5 years agofunctionthenlook
5 years ago
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