Podocarpus makes a very nice hedge and takes well to pruning. It comes in a number of varieties, so be sure to choose the best one to fit your space needs, i.e. not the one that grows to 35 feet but will have to be kept trimmed to 6 feet. Regarding pink jasmine, it will grow between the fence boards as well as over the top, regardless of what you want it to do. Your neighbor will end up with almost as much on his side as yours. Do you want to remain friends with him? My mother's neighbor allowed his jasmine to grow up and over 60 feet of wood fencing, covering it entirely. He sure enjoyed it in the spring. It eventually TOOK DOWN the fence from the weight. The moisture all that growth had trapped in the wood and weakening it was also a factor.

Nice ideas! The photos are helpful. I like the 2nd pic "stone" as it shows the mounds growing over the top of the wall. We could do that but I can not tell what type of plant it is in the pic. The tree is already planted and we are using a gator for watering it, hence the wrapper. This tree will become a very large tree and so I am leery to plant other trees nearby. But I love the idea of a group of small trees in the bend of the road, as handyman suggested.

If there is an ivy that will grow well in your area, preferably one that will stay green most if not all year, you might consider a couple of posts with lattice and have the ivy climb the lattice between the walkway and stoop. That lattice "fence" could also give you a bit of privacy on the stoop and, perhaps, even prevent a stumble or sprained ankle. Edit to add: You could make this lattice fence 4' but use 8' posts leaving nearly 7' above ground. Another plus for this idea is that there are solar lights that fit atop posts that could light your sidewalk and/or the posts, left tall enough and with hangers affixed parallel to the sidewalk, could give you a place for hanging baskets and/or flowers and/or wind chimes and/or bird feeders. Anything goes between the sidewalk and road; however, you should consider if the amount of sun the plant will get will let the plant grow in an even and attractive way and will you need to keep cutting it back in an unattractive way to keep it from sticking you as you walk by on the sidewalk. You might also need to take steps to ensure the soil between the stoop and walk doesn't wash away before your plants take root and can help hold it.

Our lakeshore house is treated professionally a couple times a year for spiders (permethrin, I think?). The co. recommends three times a year. I held out for years but once they spiders began colonizing indoors as well as outdoor surfaces, I caved! Otherwise, we do it ourselves... Dog is treated with topical Frontline to keep ticks and fleas under control. Spring invasions of ants mean placing bottle caps of borax mixed with jelly under stove (where dog can't get to it). Dog DID get into some mouse poison inexplicably in a snowbank last season, so we are looking to end use of THAT. She was very lucky in that we got most away from her and got her to vet quickly--we discovered that new formulations (Tomcat's at least) are nerve poisons, not blood thinners, so all vet could do was force vomiting, give her activated charcoal, etc. So-o, for mice we are headed back to traps. Sorry to say that we have also had to control a huge population of chipmunks, which were beginning to get into walls. A bucket half-filled with water, the surface covered with styrofoam peanuts and a floating dish of sunflower seeds, plus a plank from step to lip of bucket. Chipmunks can't resist. I don't like to think about it... Husband live traps skunks, woodchucks, etc. that burrow under garden shed, releasing or disposing of them depending on species. Downy Woodpeckers... I enjoyed watching them on suet on deck in winter, but inadvertently led them to consider our redwood siding as good nesting/shelter, actually getting into a small attic! We thought for a while there that we would have to replace the siding. I stopped feeding near the house, which we festooned with shiny disks and streamers. (I think woodpeckers are spooked by fast-moving light reflections--like shadow of a hawk?) The onslaught slowed, then stopped. Husband patched the siding with hope it will not be necessary to replace boards and sections. In late summer, we trap yellow jacket wasps with apple juice baited traps we fashion from plastic water and pop bottles. (Google for instructions.) Our efforts seem to reduce the numbers after our food and drinks on the deck.