Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Friendly fences 2021
As more and more folks are interested in their outdoor spaces, privacy is an issue that’s come up. Aside from building a fence, which, at this time with lumber prices through the roof, may not be desirable, a friendly fence may be! One of the first options that comes to mind is the dogwood shrub. There are plenty of options, the red twigged dogwood.
It grows to 10 ft tall and is hardy to zone 2! It prefers full sun, is low maintenance and vigorous. I really love my yellow dogwood.
This one grows to 8 ft. tall, is disease resistant and hardy to zone 3. It will also handle part shade. I have cut this back a few times!
Many years ago in a different location, I planted a friendly fence of Alpine Currant. It’s a hardy mounded shrub that can be kept at about 3 feet or, do like I did and let it grow more wild to 6 ft.
Hedge Cotoneaster will grow to be about 10 feet tall with a spread of 5 feet. It tends to fill out right to the ground. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 30 years. This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist locations. Hardy to zone 2 and needs little pruning.
One of the best friendly fences for a shaded area is the Upright Japanese Yew. This conical shaped shrub will grow to be about 15 feet tall and 10 feet wide. It grows at a slow rate, however, can live for 70 years or more. This shrub performs well in both full sun and full shade.
There’s viburnum too!
