Privacy Hedge Suggestions
Allan Candler
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
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Allan Candler
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoRelated Discussions
Need privacy hedge shrub suggestions
Comments (17)My favorite shrubs for hedges are the hollies. There are many of them available and some get quite tall while others remain more compact. Their tiny flowers (so small you hardly notice them) are amazingly fragrant, and the birds love the berries, although they generally don't eat the berries until later in winter. Hollies are amazingly heat-tolerant, drought-tolerant and wind-tolerant once established. Dwarf Burford holly makes a really nice privacy screen along a fence line with the proper spacing, particularly if you let them reach their natural pyramidal shape and don't prune them. The use of the word "dwarf" is deceptive because they are dwarf only in comparison to regular Burford holly which is a huge monster. The dwarf Burford hollies we planted about 10 years ago are about 10 feet tall and each plant's spread covers 6' to 8' feet in width. We spaced them pretty far apart so they could reach their mature size without crowding one another. Another lovely shrub that is underused is Abelia. These are semi-evergreen, small-leaved shrubs that flower in spring. Their growth is quite dense and they are very drought-tolerant once established. I have a chaste tree in the backyard butterfly garden and the wildlife love it, and so do I, but it is deciduous and won't provide much privacy in winter. I've linked the website of Sooner Plant Farm for you because their website is amazingly informative. It has detailed into on many of the types of plants mentioned here, and photos for many of them, as well as many, many others. After you spend a little while looking at all the plants on their website, you'll have all kinds of ideas about what you could plant for a privacy screen. I second the idea that a mixed hedgerow is healthier because one disease can wipe out a monoculture of one plant variety. Also, diversity attracts more wildlife like birds and butterflies, for example. Dawn Here is a link that might be useful: Sooner Plant Farm...See MoreNeed suggestions for privacy hedge
Comments (7)Pureguava, just to get the ideas started, how about the Arborvitae? I am not sure that 15' is possible, however. I have had a garden on distant property since 1996. Not long after I began there, a young couple moved in across the back fence. I can make a guess as when they planted the small Arborvitae. It would be sometime after Lowe's bought Eagle Hardware. The guy worked for both companies and they moved from the home about 10 years ago. So, sometime between '99 & '03 they planted Arborvitae. By 2010, with very little water and on the north side of that fence, those plants were a good 10' tall. In 2012, the current homeowner took most of them out. There are still 3 that must have been difficult for him to get to because he had a shed built near the fence with the Arborvitae between. They are probably struggling there but still look okay from my side, anyway. If you plant Arborvitae, be aware that they can be winter-damaged from snow. Tie them! Gee, the folks over there did a very poor job of caring for those quick growing shrubs! Steve Here is a link that might be useful: Evergreen Trees, Colorado State University...See Moreprivacy hedge suggestions
Comments (3)yes deer will eat them, the only thing i have thats evergreen and untouched by deer are spruce, austrian pine, and japanese black pine. i have junipers that have been nibled on but seem to survive them nibling. the pines you have are probably austrian pine or scotch pine which will be a good hedge, but not fast growing....See MorePlease suggest privacy hedging
Comments (3)How much light is available in your planned location and how soon do you need them to be at 5 or 6 ft? Here's an [older thread that discussed several options[(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/austin-suggestion-for-fast-growing-everygreen-shrub-dsvw-vd~2198833). There are several hollies, boxwoods, nandinas, and others that could provide that screening in sun or shade, but would take many years to reach ~6 ft from one or two gallon starts. Could plant canna (or similar) behind slower growing shrubs for quick 5 ft cover during the growing season while the slower evergreen plants get going. Shiny xylosma (Xylosma congesta) might be worth a look in your area. No experience with it, but appears to have fewer flowers than many alternatives and grows a couple feet per year once established. Red-tip photinia (Photinia × fraseri) are inexpensive and very fast growing, so still useful as a temporary screen. They do flower, but don't recall much of a fragrance. We have several nice (though now massive) examples surviving in our ~50 year-old neighborhood. Main problem is the heavy pruning often needed to keep them in bounds once they mature makes them much more susceptible to disease. Suppose another question is whether you want to plant something for future residents or a quick cover you'd be happy cutting down as you leave....See MoreAllan Candler
3 years agoChristopher CNC
3 years agoAllan Candler
3 years agoChristopher CNC
3 years ago
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