Would you be allowed to put in a trellis for vines?

Hello Dave,

I'm pretty sure that a trellis would be subject to the same 4' maximum height that a fence would be. Not much privacy there!

Thanks for the reply,
Ed

Hello Barbara,

The planting area is a 35' long wedge. It's 3' wide at one end and tapers to a thin little sliver. So, halfway along the fence, the planting area is only 18" wide. I could probably plant about 2/3 of the way down the fence, as I am not bothered if the plants overhang the driveway... they just need enough dirt for the roots!

Degroot's Spire looks like an excellent plant, but I am reading MANY different things about the size of the plant. Some sites say 6' tall, others 20'. Some sites say 1' wide, others 5' wide. Do have personal experience with the plant to say how tall and wide it would become?

I've never had arborvitae before. Can they be pruned to size?

Thanks,
Ed

Ed, don't you just hate it when that happens..

I'm afraid I don't have personal experience with Degroot's Spire, and I'm not the person to ask about pruning. Keeping something small that wants to grow tall could get pretty old pretty fast, though, seems to me.

Maybe one of the resident experts on this forum will weigh in, though.

Being a conifer the 'DeGroot's Spire' will never stop growing. Pruning can be done to slow it down (if the pruning is done carefully and green is left on every branch you want to live) but you won't be able to keep it at a given size. The largest I've seen in person was about 12-15 ft tall and 18 inches in diameter. Like many other plants, cultural conditions may produce variable sizes. And speaking of sizes, the ones you read on tags are generally 10 year estimates. Having said all that, I'd probably still use it for at least part of the screen.

tj

Another possibility. Could you have the 4 foot fence and plant small trees along it e.g. Sorbus aucuparia, vilmorinii, cashmeriana etc grown as standards so that the first 4 feet are trunk (ie narrow) and the top is allowed to bush out where there is no restriction on space? Or if you don't mind maintenancce how about pleaching? ie a hedge on legs?

Here is a link that might be useful: Pleaching

Thanks everyone for your replies.

Degroot's Spire is high on my list, but it seems too wide for the thin section of my garden bed.

Concerning the "pleached" trees, I do not think I would keep up with those!

I have been in contact with several local bamboo suppliers. I'm a little worried that the barriers they sell won't be able to contain the bamboo within the space. Otherwise the bamboo is just the ticket!

And about Phyracanthas (fire thorn) ?

It is not expensive, very adaptable, it can be trained as a hedge, pergola, arch or left as a very big shrub, grows fast and is evergreen!! I have and love it!! I just prune as a hedge once a year and nothing more.

IME over many years, butchering a plant to fit a space it is not evolved for rarely works.

Slow grower but will fit the spot is Rhamnus 'Fine Line'.

Dan

Black bamboo won't get out of control; you can purchase italian cypress in various stages of growth so you get the height you want; at the narrow end, you can use a stake and wire and start a fragrant vine that covers the end triangle.

Juniperus virginiana "Taylor' stays very narrow and grows fast. However, the only nursery I've ever found that carries it is in Oklahoma and the shipping is quite high.

Maybe one of the clumping bamboos like Fargesia sp. 'Rufa' ? It gets to about 8 feet in a typical zone 6 climate.

Here is a link that might be useful: Link

Without a photo I am having a difficult time understanding why privacy is needed at the front end of your driveway which presumably leads to the public street? One would think privacy activities take place in the back yard.
That said it is your right to want it :)

But eighteen inches of width and a desired height of eight feet that behaves and stays that size is a tall order- it would be my opinion that anything you do is going to require more maintenance than it is worth unless pruning is your favorite hobby.

I don't think DeGroot's would be good for privacy as they are so narrow toward the top. I have three in a group and while they are one of the best looking arborvitaes I have their use is more architectural than screening.
Mine have gone from a couple of feet to approximately six/seven feet in five years.
How long are you willing to wait?
And I have to say that the thought of pruning a plant as naturally perfect in form as a DeGroot's makes me a little ill.

Again, without a photo it is difficult to say but I would plant something thick and screening down as far as was practical and then use decorative boulders in the narrowest section.

Or surprise my wonderful neighbor with some plants that he could plant on his side of the fence.
Maybe a neighborly discussion is in order?

this is to piggyback the pyracantha suggestion.
Cotoneaster looks like it, gets the red berries in winter, but is thornless

I have sweet autumn clematis growing on tuteur that is tall and thick enough for your purposes for all but 2 months of the year after I cut it back. Even then the tuteur itsel plus the longest woody stem I leave provide some screen. Id also think carefully about florals suggestion if standard. Peegee hydrangea, wisteria, compact weeping cherry plus many more small trees, shrubs, and vines can be shaped to fill the space. What’s on the neighbors side and would they mind or enjoy something that spilled over?

This thread is more than 7 years old! I hardly think suggestions made at this late date are going to be very helpful to the OP..............

If someone sees this and keeps this thread alive, maybe I could get an answer for my dilemma! I have a 100+ driveway with three feet on either side for planting. At the beginning of the driveway and the end of the driveway, I'm in dire need of privacy. I planted some Green Giant Arborvitae, near the entry to the house but I'd need about 50 of them to give me the privacy I need which would cost a small fortune. Can anyone suggest something that they have experience with? Landscapers here in the northeast have suggested Rosa Rugosa, Viburnum and Privet.

glenda20, it would be better if you started your own thread :-) Include photos of the areas in question and your geographic location. And none of the plants you have listed have an 'extremely narrow' profile as the thread topic suggests so please provide the requirements your specific situation calls for.

I've never started a thread but will try! Thanks very much.