Advice is sought for trees or shrubs where the 'green' grows from 5' or 6' to about 9' or 10' will grow above a fence as a privacy screening. I've thought of Espalier but was wondering what other options are out there.
I've about 25m of ugly brown fence in front of an ongoing development so would like to
1.- Build a raised bed in front of fence
2.- have screening above the fence in the form of shrubbery
3.- hide the fence with a different plant ie. Climbing rose that will grow on wire ( as long as it doesn't take years to establish)
I realise that a 10' tree of this kind is an 'established' tree and will be quite expensive but at the moment the main thing is to get the privacy sorted. The hiding of the fence doesn't have to be so instant.
What's the developer planning to do on the other side, to screen Tymbian Towers? That might partially solve your problem.
Bump, as I'm looking to do something very similar 🙂
Pyracantha. It solves all sorts of neighbourly issues!
Bugger to prune though.
Oh, leave a gap between the raised bed and the fence. Saves the fence sitting in moisture which they don't like.
For border security pyracantha without a doubt but yep absolute pain to trim and doesn't like going through a shredder!
Bamboo can form great screening, I have some down one side of the garden fencing for privacy, lots of different varieties and insects love living in it.
Best to use a mix of bamboo species. All the individuals of any one species will all flower and die at the same time.
And they may be very invasive, growing under concrete paths, for instance.
Pleached hornbeams
The less bamboo people plant the better...it spreads everywhere along root runners. Yes I know SOME varieties don't but even then it's just horrible.
How about a mix of small trees and tall shrubs, eleagnus, photinia, birch, cypress, Pieris? Or a beech hedge, which will take a while to grow to size and fill in.
Try some trellis, can then grow various climbers and also use to espalier fruit trees along. I wouldn't bother with the raised bed just plant a good mixture of shrubs and trees to vary the height and create a bed of varying depths/distance from the fence. A good local garden centre will be able to advise on plants. It may be worth waiting until the development is nearing completion before so you can plant to block some views from neighbours windows into your house and parts of the garden etc. Don't over fill initially, but build up over a year or two so if things don't work(or do) you can change without having to do too much to change.
Just mix things up and try not to be too regimented as formal needs to be done really precisely and is not so flexible if you need to block a view etc
Hope this helps
Nick
Grissalina is an atractice evergreen hedge very quick to establish. They come plain and variagated. Hornbeam is good - and tend to keep its dead leaves on till the new ones grow next year. If your gonna pleach species then learn how to do it well. But quite pointless if you can afford to plant densely. Beech is good. Climbers are good but messy. If you mix species of trees or climbers be aware that the dominant species willl take over. Sea buckthorn is incredibly thorny and fas growing and has one of the highest concentration of Vitamin C in its fruits. Leylanii - fast, comes in different colours, trims beautifully and superb habitat for insects. Similar to leylandii is thuja (western red cedar). More forgiving than leylandii, evergreen and comess in lots of different colours, and cheap. Buying large species (6 - 10') is pointless and incredibly expensive. And generally trained as a standard tree rather than a screen. Alltough large screening plants are available on the market at a very high cost. lombardy poplars would be a nice feature aranged evenly. Clematis montana, virginia creeper, boston Ivy. Kiwi vine, grape vine. Lots of choices
At this point cost is irrelevant. My client would like instant coverage hence wanting ideas for mature 9 - 10' trees/ shrubs. The idea behind this is that the trees creating the privacy screening are already in place when someone moves into the development.
Oh . . . a "client" . . and "cost is irrelevant" 🙄
Maybe contact a professional landscape designer/gardener?
I see - Well each tree would cost between £100 - £1000. Species good for screening - Western Hemlock, Cedars, Holly, Leylandi, Holm Oak. Beech, Laurel (Cherry and bay). Obviously, evergreens are your best bet. Beech and Hornbeam can keep their leaves when winter sets, but not very well as a tree, better as a hedge.
Beech (and I think Hornbeam too) only retains dead leaves in winter in a zone called the juvenile cone. That works ok in a hedge, but may not extend high and wide enough for your purpose.
(edit) Alan Mitchell says it is 'about six feet across at the base and tapering to a point about nine feet up the tree'.
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