Need suggestions for tall screening shrub

11 years ago

We are buying our daughter/son-in-law shrubs for their back yard and need suggestions for a tall shrub to go along their back yard wall. The wall faces North and gets partially shaded on both the East and West sides by neighboring citrus trees. The goal is for the shrubs to grow tall enough (and fast enough) to screen a neighborÃ¢ÂÂs 2nd floor window from their back yard. I thought Orange Jubilee would be a good choice since it grows so tall and so fast, but it requires full sun (or so the nursery tells me). Then I thought Xylosma - but it's a slow grower. Then maybe Japanese Privet, but it has poisonous berries (they have a dog and baby and are cautious about any plant that is poisonous.). They live in Northeast Phoenix. Any suggestions?

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Comments (5)

nel5397
11 years ago
african sumac?
piranhafem
11 years ago
Hopbush can grow very tall, and has nice dense foliage. Or how about willow acacia?
grant_in_arizona
11 years ago
What a great gift for your daughter and son in law! Fun fun fun.

You've gotten some great suggestions for sure. The first thing that came to my mind is the same as piranha's: hopseed/hop bush/Dodonaea viscosa. I've got a nice hedge of it in part of my back garden and it goes great in full sun, partial sun, and almost full shade (it's more dense in sun but is quite dense still in partial shade). Plus once established it really doesn't need much water, especially if you want its growth to slow down. You can trim it as tall or as short as you want.

Let us know what you select and how it works out!
Happy gardening!
Grant

Here is a link that might be useful: Hopseed description on Desert-Tropicals website
wanna_run_faster
11 years ago
I have a similiar problem except it's a towering play fort I'm trying to block :)

I just planted a couple of the purple hopseed bushes. Definitely give a nice pop of color!

Grant, do you happen to have pictures of your hopseed / hedge?

Thanks,

Helen
grant_in_arizona
11 years ago
Great choice, Helen. Keep us posted. The purple as you know, turns back to green in summer. I accidentally added a purple one to my green hedge and my mistake really stands out in winter, hah! I don't mind it really, the whole thing is just a casual jumbly mess anyway, just to provide some privacy. The top got just a touch of frost damage but overall looks decent. I'll try to get a pic of mine tomorrow. Dont' expect much though, LOL, I'm a plant 'em and forget 'em kinda guy. Happy gardening all!

Here is a link that might be useful: Pics from my garden, March 2013