Before you strike up your BBQ for the season, you should go out to your patio and check out your neighbors. If you can see them, they for sure can see you! If you would like to entertain, or just sit in your garden without the visual of your neighbors, you may want to consider planting a hedge.
Whether you have 3 feet of space or 30 feet of space, there is a plant to help you out. Below are my top 5 plants for various situations.
Emerald Green Arborvitae
(Thuja plicata ‘Emerald Green’). This may seem like an obvious choice to many; however this is the best bang for your buck in my opinion. This dark green evergreen is fast growing. More importantly, it grows tall without growing wide. Arborvitae will top out at 15 ft. and 3’ wide. The trick to growing these successfully is full sun and well-drained soil.
Leyland Cypress
(Cupressus × leylandii) is also a great choice if you have a bit more width to your area. When left unpruned, Leyland cypress tend to add a lot more grace and movement to a garden than the traditional arborvitae. Leyland cypress can also be trimmed and sheared to any shape very easily. In full sun they can reach a mature 50’ x 20’.
Schip Laurel
(Prunus laurocerasus ‘Schipkaensis’) – An improved version of English Laurel. Dark thick glossy green leaves are angled upward while tall fragrant white bottle brush blooms line each stem in the spring. Angled leaves not only help with disease resistance, but are more aesthetically pleasing than standard English laurel. Really fast growing can put on up to 3 feet per year, able to tolerate part shade and is deer resistant- what more can a gardener ask for? Schip Laurel prefer part sun and reach a mature at 15 ft. x 5’.
Camellia
(camellia spp) – If you have shade- this is the best option. Dark glossy green leaves create a beautiful backdrop to the HUGE blooms in either the late fall and winter or the early spring. Camellias are a bit slow to establish, so start larger when creating a hedge and be patient for them to reach their full 8’x8′ potenital. Another great feature of this alternative hedge plant is that they are deer resistant. 8’ x 8’
Evergreen Clematis
(Clematis armandii)- If garden real estate is a premium in your space, the new hot trend is to install large panels along your fence line either horizontally along the top of the existing fence or vertical and strategically placed. Planting evergreen vines along the base of the fence or trellis will allow you to train your vines to create the best coverage while not sacrificing space. The evergreen clematis is really fast growing, can tolerate shade and blooms prolifically in the height of spring. Oh, did I mention the bright white star shaped flowers are also fragrant, attracts butterflies and is deer resistant? Grows 20-25’
Hedges can be a solid mass planting of the same plant, or you can get creative and mix it up by adding more blooming shrubs, textures and seasonal interest. If you need help creating your own paradise, bring in photos and measurements to the garden center, we would love to help create your own secret garden. Oh, and don’t forget about our Planscaper progam!
Before you strike up your BBQ for the season, you should go out to your patio and check out your neighbors. If you can see them, they for sure can see you! If you would like to entertain, or just sit in your garden without the visual of your neighbors, you may want to consider planting a hedge.
Whether you have 3 feet of space or 30 feet of space, there is a plant to help you out. Below are my top 5 plants for various situations.
Emerald Green Arborvitae
(Thuja plicata ‘Emerald Green’). This may seem like an obvious choice to many; however this is the best bang for your buck in my opinion. This dark green evergreen is fast growing. More importantly, it grows tall without growing wide. Arborvitae will top out at 15 ft. and 3’ wide. The trick to growing these successfully is full sun and well-drained soil.
Leyland Cypress
(Cupressus × leylandii) is also a great choice if you have a bit more width to your area. When left unpruned, Leyland cypress tend to add a lot more grace and movement to a garden than the traditional arborvitae. Leyland cypress can also be trimmed and sheared to any shape very easily. In full sun they can reach a mature 50’ x 20’.
Schip Laurel
(Prunus laurocerasus ‘Schipkaensis’) – An improved version of English Laurel. Dark thick glossy green leaves are angled upward while tall fragrant white bottle brush blooms line each stem in the spring. Angled leaves not only help with disease resistance, but are more aesthetically pleasing than standard English laurel. Really fast growing can put on up to 3 feet per year, able to tolerate part shade and is deer resistant- what more can a gardener ask for? Schip Laurel prefer part sun and reach a mature at 15 ft. x 5’.
Camellia
(camellia spp) – If you have shade- this is the best option. Dark glossy green leaves create a beautiful backdrop to the HUGE blooms in either the late fall and winter or the early spring. Camellias are a bit slow to establish, so start larger when creating a hedge and be patient for them to reach their full 8’x8′ potenital. Another great feature of this alternative hedge plant is that they are deer resistant. 8’ x 8’
Evergreen Clematis
(Clematis armandii)- If garden real estate is a premium in your space, the new hot trend is to install large panels along your fence line either horizontally along the top of the existing fence or vertical and strategically placed. Planting evergreen vines along the base of the fence or trellis will allow you to train your vines to create the best coverage while not sacrificing space. The evergreen clematis is really fast growing, can tolerate shade and blooms prolifically in the height of spring. Oh, did I mention the bright white star shaped flowers are also fragrant, attracts butterflies and is deer resistant? Grows 20-25’
Hedges can be a solid mass planting of the same plant, or you can get creative and mix it up by adding more blooming shrubs, textures and seasonal interest. If you need help creating your own paradise, bring in photos and measurements to the garden center, we would love to help create your own secret garden. Oh, and don’t forget about our Planscaper progam!
