Any suggestions on a good "privacy" tree / bush?

[riptides]

Bamboo

No way man, that stuff is uncontrolable.

 

[Depmandog]

What about Holly bushes? They are impenetrable. We only have them in front of our house as a decorative plant. I keep them trimmed at 5' wide x 5' high. NEVER ever watered then past the initial planting.

 

[Larro Darro]

You might want to read up on Wax Myrtles....I planted a good number on our farm this spring and they are doing great...they grow to 15 to 20 ft. tall and wide....nice looking , attract birds and wildlife and have medicinal qualities...In the early days their leaves were rendered to make candle wax....:thumbsup:

I thought it was the berries they made candles from. But as my wife tells me, I am usually mistaken.



Sig, down here in Fl when people want to hedge row some trees on the cheap, the sand pine is often used. Not sure how they would do up there in NC.

I know wax myrtles do good up there. John Lawson's history of NC tells of them growing in the early 1700's.

I have them here on the grounds at work, but not planted close together. With the proper spacing and trimming they should be bushy enough.

Or if you could come off the power lines a few feet, red cedar makes a good hedge row.

 

[TRR]

As for Bamboo, there are about a zillion different cultivars which fall into 2 different types: running and clump. The running is what most people are familiar with and is difficult to control. The clump type is much easier to control. It does move from it's originally planted location, but not very fast and can be controlled. (Speed is determined by fertilizer, water, etc.) For example we had the clump timber bamboo in Florida and in 10 years it grew from one stem to a patch about 10 ft in diameter.

Wax Myrtles (in Florida anyway) have a short life expectancy and are brittle. They break easily and the center has a tendency to rot which is what makes them brittle.

 

[creekbend]

How about Cedar?

 

[robbyr]

Don't know about North Carolina but here lot of folks have red tip photenias. Not sure but might grow slightly taller than the fifteen feet you're looking for. I'm thinking about planting some at my MIL's to block off some road noise and visibility.

 

[riptides]

As for Bamboo, there are about a zillion different cultivars which fall into 2 different types: running and clump. The running is what most people are familiar with and is difficult to control. The clump type is much easier to control. It does move from it's originally planted location, but not very fast and can be controlled. (Speed is determined by fertilizer, water, etc.) For example we had the clump timber bamboo in Florida and in 10 years it grew from one stem to a patch about 10 ft in diameter.

Wax Myrtles (in Florida anyway) have a short life expectancy and are brittle. They break easily and the center has a tendency to rot which is what makes them brittle.

Interesting, I never knew that. I'll have to check it out more. Always liked the look, but the reputation was avoid due to my lack of knowledge on the species.

 

[JohnfromPA]

Do the deer eat them? The deer here seem to eat everything except the cypresses. We are also looking for suitable plants for a privacy hedge alongside the road of our community RV storage area. Need about 250 feet of space filled with something that won't grow up to hit the power lines and that the deer won't destroy.

Good question. I don't really know. They are an "evergreen" and don't exactly have soft foliage.

 

[rwork]

As for Bamboo, there are about a zillion different cultivars which fall into 2 different types: running and clump. The running is what most people are familiar with and is difficult to control. The clump type is much easier to control. It does move from it's originally planted location, but not very fast and can be controlled. (Speed is determined by fertilizer, water, etc.) For example we had the clump timber bamboo in Florida and in 10 years it grew from one stem to a patch about 10 ft in diameter.

Wax Myrtles (in Florida anyway) have a short life expectancy and are brittle. They break easily and the center has a tendency to rot which is what makes them brittle.

In regards to the clumping bamboo, I've got a couple patches that have been there around 20 years or so, and are still confined to about a 16' clump. It is so dense, you can barely see daylight through it!

 

[RalphVa]

Try the web site called fastgrowingtrees. I bought a juniper and some black (clumping) bamboo from them. I've also Leylands where they'll fit. My neighbor to one side has them all down the side of his driveway.