Native Plants

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Tuesday - February 24, 2009

From: Virginia Beach, VA
Region: Mid-Atlantic
Topic: Privacy Screening
Title: Plants to augment a privacy fence in Virginia Beach.
Answered by: Jimmy Mills

QUESTION:

I live in Virginia Beach, VA and I have a small back yard about 75 ft deep and 60 ft wide. We have a six ft privacy fence but still have many undesirable views over the fence I would love to block out as much of the year as possible. Is there a plant, tree, shrub, etc..that you can recommend we plant that will grow fairly quickly without overcrowding my yard and blocking out the sun? I would be happy with 3-4 trees spaced out in the yard or something to plant in a row or a mixture of both. Thanks in advance,

ANSWER:

Mr. Smarty Plants often gets questions about plants that are suitable for privacy hedges, and these four plants are often recommended for this purpose.

Wax myrtle, Morella cerifera (wax myrtle) an evergreen shrub growing 6-12" ft. tall. See more at Aggie Horticulture Database

Yaupon, Ilex vomitoria (yaupon) a picturesque, evergreen shrub growing 12-25 ft tall. Female plants produce an abundance of red berries. See more at Aggie Horticulture Database

Sweet bay magnolia Magnolia virginiana (sweetbay) This is a slender tree or shrub with pale grey bark, 12-20 ft. tall. The solitary, fragrant flowers are 4-6 in. across, with 9-12 velvety-white petals 2-3 inches across. See more at NC State University

Eastern redcedar Juniperus virginiana (eastern redcedar) This evergreen usually reaches a height of 30 - 40 ft. but can be pruned to form a hedge. There are dwarf varieties available that would make this easier. Contact UConn Plant Database or North Carolina State University.

For more information about Virginia shrubs, go to our website and select Recommended Species. Click on Virginia on the map, and you will get a list of 122 commercially available native plant species suitable for planned landscapes in Virginia. If you chose the NARROW YOUR SEARCH option and chose Shrub in the "Habit" window, your plant list shrinks to 30 shrubs suitable for Virginia. Clicking on any name on the list will take you to the NATIVE PLANT DATABASE page for that plant. There you can learn characteristics of the plant, such as habitat, size, growing conditions, benefits, etc. The ADDITIONAL RESOURCES box toward the bottom of the page can link you to further informatiion sources on Google. Visit our Suppliers Directory for help in locating nurseries theat sell the plants you chose for your hedge.

Morella cerifera

Ilex vomitoria

Magnolia virginiana