Green screens create a private yet welcoming oasis
Many urban residential environments , despite their advantages , are cursed with an surplus of asphalt , noise , and unsightly views . So for those of us who subsist in cities , there is much to be suppose for creating a private haven , no matter how small the plot . Fortunately , I populate on a street where the small yards are given mostly to lawn . Mine happen to be a skinny lawn , emphasize by little more than a few foundation bush , so the possibilities were endless for creating my own garden from scratch . Out front , I wanted to barricade the survey of the automobile , driveways , and power perch that draw both sides of the street , and I wanted to make a sense of semitrailer - privacy in the garden , while keeping the front door seeable and approachable to visitor . Out back , I run into an opportunity for full privacy . To rip this off , I used a variety of enclosures — mostly green ones , punctuate or underpin by a few structures — to mark the boundaries of my yard . By doing this , I ’ve created a garden that is private on the interior and intriguing from the exterior .
Tall plantings hide power lines
To enclose the front garden , I started by planting large shrubs and trees at the property corners to sort the power line of products from sentiment . I did this with evergreen Burford and Foster ’s Buddy Holly ( Ilex cornuta‘Burfordii ’ , USDA Hardiness Zones 7 to 9 , andI.×attenuata‘Foster # 2 ’ , Zones 6 to 9 ) and the deciduousHydrangea paniculata‘Tardiva ’ , district 3 to 8) . I limbed up their multiple trunks to screen the power lines without completely stymy the horizon of the sidewalk . Also , the sculptural trunks are eye - arrest .
From the street , these limbed - up Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree and shrubs add a greater sense of profundity as you look through them toward the house , make my tiny front yard seem just a little bigger . They also offer a backdrop for other plantings — yearbook , perennial , and evergreen ground covering fire . Over time , as these anchor plants mature and create a louche environment , I am replacing the Lord’s Day - loving perennial and yearly with shade - sleep together perennials and land natural covering .
Along one side in the front , I expand this construct of motley , layered plantings by plant a screen of evergreen plant and deciduous plant from the turning point of the lot to the sign . Evergreen Charles Hardin Holley and a chaste Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ( Vitex agnus - castus , Zones 6 to 9 ) tread down toHydrangea macrophylla‘Ayesha ’ ( Zones 6 to 9 ) and other flowering shrub , yearbook , and perennials to create a air pocket garden ground by a small birdbath .
A low hedge provides semi-privacy
Along the front edge of my shrink lawn , I planted a low hedging of European beeches ( Fagus sylvatica , Zones 5 to 7 ) , though American beeches ( F. grandifolia , Zones 3 to 9 ) would have easily maintained as a hedge if planted intimately , cut selectively in winter , and sheared a couple of times during the grow season .
I choose the beech for several reason . In improver to suit the dash of my bungalow garden , they could be easy kept under 4 foot in height , which was important in the front yard , where I wanted something low enough to allow views both in and out of the garden . Also , I want something dissimilar from the traditional box , holly , or privet hedgerow .
Though beech tree are ordinarily grown in the South , you do n’t often see them maintained as hedge . These beeches hold on to their leave until early outflow , when they put out delicate Modern growth that shimmers in the sunshine . In summer , the leaves are a productive common , and in the dip , they sprain a beautiful golden color .
A vine-draped fence offers seasonal views
In wintertime , when the leave have fallen from the neighborhood trees , I have a wonderful horizon of the Atlanta skyline . To preserve this view , I enclosed the south side of the front M with open fencing draped in vines that dismiss their leaves once cold atmospheric condition arrives .
The fence is constructed from three large black locust tree ( Robinia pseudoacacia ) posts with several steel rods driven through them horizontally . The black-market locust has a straight trunk and is slow to rot , making it idealistic for fence post and rail . Though it ’s most normally sell as split rail , I was able to find some unsplit logs .
The fencing is draped with ‘ Mermaid ’ ( Zones 6 to 9 ) and ‘ New Dawn ’ ( Zones 5 to 9 ) roses and accented with several clematis vine , which make a fine spring show and provide plenty of heavy , green foliage for screening throughout the summer . At their feet , on the public side , is a bed filled with colourful annuals and perennials .
Turn your sidewalk into a garden room
If you ’re fortunate enough to have a pavement , you have the perfect billet for a garden area you may divvy up with your neighbors . By planting both sides of my pavement with a premix of small Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , flowering shrubs , and perennials , I created a garden that rarely break down to slow down passersby . Since this is considered public space , it pays to keep a few thing in mind when you set this area .
Plant both sides of a fence
For instant enclosure around a garden space , fence is a clean-cut option to hedge . In the backyard , where I could have used tall , unanimous board fencing for privacy , I opted instead for hog - wire fencing string between locust tree posts , to keep the dogs in check . Hog - wire fencing is exactly what you ’d expect — rolls of telegram fence ( with larger square than those of hardware cloth or volaille wire ) used by granger to keep in hogs . And though I do n’t think it makes a bad - look fencing , I planted both sides to create a lush , living paries that I find more interesting than almost any kind of fence because of the varied texture and the agency it changes throughout the seasons .
That said , I recently total a low section of bamboo fence along the back holding contrast that I like specifically for its grain and the way it adds to the Asian motif I ’ve been develop in my rearward garden . I slip up across this bamboo in an significance shop , where it had been used as packing textile .
planting can beautify a fence as well as soften its hard lines . In tight situation , all you need is a few inches of planting domain to grow vine that can be check along a fence . Though there ’s limited space between the backyard fencing and a driveway share with neighbors , I ’ve work out in a mix of minute , unsloped shrubs , perennial , and shade - patient of vine like five - leaf akebia ( Akebia quinata , Zones 5 to 9 ) . Inside the fencing , where there ’s a bit more room , I ’m growing more Foster ’s hollies along with a variety of other favorite plants .
The rear gate , which leads from the drive to the backyard garden , is Asiatic inspired . The doors were rescued from a detritus pile , and the rest of the structure , admit the tin ceiling , was built to accommodate them . Unlike the open logic gate and arbor out front , this solid logic gate sends the subject matter that this is my private retreat in the heart of the metropolis .
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You can barely see the neighbor’s front yard through this screening, which includes deciduous and evergreen trees, a low hedge, and annuals and perennials. (#2 on site plan)
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You can barely see the neighbor’s front yard through this screening, which includes deciduous and evergreen trees, a low hedge, and annuals and perennials. (#2 on site plan)
To create a framework for the flowering vines and canes, decorative yet functional steel rods are driven through long-lasting locust posts. (#3 on site plan)
Neighbors can enjoy the changing seasons in this pass-through garden bordering both sides of the front walk. (#4 on site plan)
Rich plantings signal an in-town oasis. Though the plantings are designed primarily to create a semiprivate front-yard garden, they look just as good from the street as from the house. (#5 on site plan)
