Native Plants

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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)