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Tuesday - June 17, 2014

From: Wellfleet, MA
Region: Northeast
Topic: Plant Lists, Privacy Screening, Shrubs, Trees
Title: Screening Plants for Cape Cod
Answered by: Anne Van Nest

QUESTION:

I need to plant some fairly high growing leafy plants/bushes/trees for privacy and as a sound barrier in (the remains of) a pine forest in Cape Cod, MA. The pines grow tall and skinny so that we can see/hear right through to our neighbors. Black walnut do grow in between the pines, but they are invasive so not good for our purposes.

ANSWER:

Thanks for considering native plants to create a screen in your pine forest in Cape Cod. In addition to having lots of seedlings, black walnuts also secrete a substance called Juglone that is toxic to many other plants and keeps away any competition – so you are smart to be wary of this tree.
To find a list of native plants to consider as interplants to create a privacy screen, the best place to start is the Lady Bird Johnson Native Plant Database. Under the Combination Search, select Massachusetts, shrub (then tree), perennial, shade, dry and 3-12 feet tall. There are several shrubs and trees that are the result of this search criteria that you might consider.
Alder:
Alnus viridis ssp. crispa (green alder)
Serviceberries:
Amelanchier arborea (common serviceberry)
Amelanchier bartramiana (oblongfruit serviceberry)
Amelanchier laevis (Allegheny serviceberry)
Amelanchier sanguinea (roundleaf serviceberry)
Amelanchier stolonifera (running serviceberry)
Dogwoods:
Cornus florida (flowering dogwood)
Cornus rugosa (roundleaf dogwood)
Hazelnut:
Corylus americana (American hazelnut)
Witch hazel:
Hamamelis virginiana (witch hazel)
Holly:
Ilex opaca (American holly), evergreen
Ilex verticillata (common winterberry)
Spicebush:
Lindera benzoin (Northern spicebush)
Mulberry:
Morus rubra (red mulberry)
Ninebark:
Physocarpus opulifolius (Atlantic ninebark)
Cherry:
Prunus serotina (black cherry)
Prunus virginiana (chokecherry)
Wafer ash:
Ptelea trifoliata (wafer ash)
Sumac:
Rhus aromatic (fragrant sumac)
Rhus glabra (smooth sumac)
Rhus typhina (staghorn sumac)
Rose:
Rosa setigera (climbing prairie rose)
Yew:
Taxus canadensis (Canada yew)
Blueberry:
Vaccinium corymbosum (highbush blueberry)
Viburnum:
Viburnum acerifolium (mapleleaf viburnum)
Viburnum rafinesquianum (downy arrowwood)

 

From the Image Gallery


Oblongfruit serviceberry
Amelanchier bartramiana

Allegheny serviceberry
Amelanchier laevis

Roundleaf serviceberry
Amelanchier sanguinea

Flowering dogwood
Cornus florida

American hazelnut
Corylus americana

Witch-hazel
Hamamelis virginiana

American holly
Ilex opaca

Common winterberry
Ilex verticillata

Common ninebark
Physocarpus opulifolius

Black cherry
Prunus serotina

Wafer ash
Ptelea trifoliata

Mapleleaf viburnum
Viburnum acerifolium

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