Four Ideas for Screening a Yard

Here’s how one garden designer balanced privacy with neighborliness

Garden historiographer consider that the very first gardens were created as places of sanctuary from enemies . Although my worst opposition these twenty-four hour period are lapin , raccoon , and deer , I still have a desire for natural enclosure and concealment . Perhaps this is because I live in a Chicago suburb where the theatre are close together and the lots are foresighted , minute rectangles .

Although I like my neighbors , balancing the demand of privacy and neighborliness dominated my intellection as I faced the challenge of designing my own landscape . While I require privacy , I did n’t want to contend myself in or keep my neighbors out all . To achieve privacy without erecting a fence , I name the key areas of the garden where I wanted to minimise the living - in - a - fishbowl effect . I also considered the feature in my neighbors ’ yard that I want to “ take up . ” I then came up with creative way to stop the center or slip the view , depend on the berth . The result is a garden that does not shut me out of the locality but at the same clock time offers places to go when I desire secrecy .

By using a combination of strategies to immobilize , divert , or steal view , our yard is now a haven with no walls . Although it is possible to see our neighbors and say hello , we do n’t feel that it is require with each coming and going . Our yard is a private place of recourse , even though neighbor and an elementary school are only step off .

1. Filter views with columnar trees

For my small stack , I chose columnar , or fastigiate , tree diagram which remain relatively narrow as they grow taller and also provide a strong vertical constituent in the landscape . I used evergreen plant textile where I wanted year - round privacy and deciduous textile where enclosure in the summertime was more important . For example , to create privacy between my neighbor ’s front porch and my front door , I engraft three columnar Scotch whiskey pines ( Pinus sylvestris‘Fastigiata ’ , USDA Hardiness Zones 3–7 ) in a row , 8 feet asunder . The open hedge mold by the pines is now about 20 feet tall , 4 to 5 feet broad , and about 20 foot tenacious . There is rich distance between each tree diagram for me to watch glimpses of my neighbors , but we do n’t intrude on each other with our comings and going .

2. Make the most of elevation changes

My backyard abuts the parking lot of a two - history schooling . There is no quick fix to cover a 40 - foot - tall building , so I refocus the view to the center of the cubic yard . I knew modest changes in elevation make the thaumaturgy of more space , so in the down in the mouth part of the yard I raise the difference in grade by create a deep-set garden . I hollow an area about 14 metrical foot by 28 fundament to a depth of 14 inches to become a patio wall by a seat paries . I mounded up the dirt from the excavation between the terrace and the rear property line to make a berm ranging in summit from 18 to 24 inches above the original grade . As soon as you take the first gradation down into the sunken garden , your focal point is on the terrace and on the garden on the berm rather of up toward the schoolhouse . To further block the view of the school , I tot a solid fence on the holding melodic phrase , then planted large Black Hills spruce trees ( Picea glauca‘Densata ’ , Zones 3–6 ) on the gamy points of the berm .

3. Use freestanding trellis panels to screen the view

Along one side of the house , I interspersed freestanding trellis panels 8 feet marvelous and 4 ft wide with columnar white pines ( Pinus strobus‘Fastigiata ’ , Zones 4–9 ) to part screen the view . When I see out my sunroom window in the winter , they block the view of my neighbor ’s driveway and the foundation of their theater . Farther along the property short letter , the panel allow me to catch glimpses into my neighbour ’s garden , which I plan , while still give me some privacy . One motivator to using treillage panels is that our zoning code permit a treillage to be built at a greater height than it allow a fence . I grow clematis ( Clematisspp . and cvs . , Zones 4–9 ) and other vine on the trellises for additional privacy .

4. Stagger plant material for mutual privacy

To settle how to create some privacy between my backyard and my other neighbor ’s back porch I seat in each of the three seat areas in my garden and bet toward their porch . I determined that two braggart mugo pines ( Pinus mugo , zone 3–7 ) and a pagoda dogwood ( Cornus alternifolia , zone 4–8 ) planted in a staggered , or triangular , normal , would limit my view without having to use a substantial hedge . This grouping also blocks the view of my own large driveway and service department , which makes a spectacular difference in the feel of the garden .

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