What type of bush can grow like a fence?

Question

I've seen people grow a tall bush in place of a fence, that can be trimmed to be fairly narrow as well. What type of bush are they planting? Are there many that can grow like that? And how do I plant it so it grows correctly?

Answer 1

Typical woody plants for clipped hedges include Privet, Hawthorn, Beech, Yew, Leyland Cypress, Hemlock, Arborvitae, Barberry, Boxwood, & Holly.

An early 20th century fashion was for tapestry hedges, using a mix of golden, green and glaucous dwarf Conifers, or Beech and Copper Beech.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedge_(gardening)

The shape of shrubs used for hedges or privacy fences is controlled by pruning.

Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) is a flowering shrub, also known as althea, that can reach a height of 8'-10' with a spread of 4'-6'. These bushes profit from pruning. Blooms can be red, pink, blue, purple or white. Rose of sharon works well in shrub borders, because of its upright form. A row of these shrubs standing shoulder-to-shoulder forms a colorful privacy screen. Zones 5-9.

Blackhaw viburnum (Viburnum prunifolium) is a deciduous thornless shrub with white flowers in May, which become an edible fruit at harvest time. Dark green foliage morphs to purple to reddish-bronze to a crimson in fall. It achieves a height of 12-15' and a spread 8-12'. Zones 3-9.

Irish junipers (Juniperus communis 'Stricta') has a dense growth-habit and narrow, columnar form. Just let them stand together in a colonnade to form a loose border, walling out unwanted sights, sounds and overly-curious neighbors. Irish juniper has a wonderful bluish-green color and grows to 10'-12' in height. These evergreen shrubs are so narrow in width as to resemble a column. Hardy to zone 3.
http://landscaping.about.com/cs/hedgesfences/a/privacy_fences_4.htm

A tutorial on How to Trim Hedges:
http://landscaping.about.com/od/hedgesfences/ss/trimming_hedges.htm

Good luck! Hope this is helpful.

Answer 2

As your other answers state their is a wide variety of sutiable plants, it all depends on your area and climate

For something different I like the english box hedge "Buxus sempervirens". It is a bit slower growing but I have grown a hedge up to approx 1.5m
There are other Buxus that are much lower growing
The Busus hedge can be trimmed reasonably narrow with regular light clipping

My other favourite is Photinia. The "Robusta" forms a denser hedge but the "Red Robin" has much brighter red on the new growth
The Nursery I work for produces thousands of Photinia each year

Answer 3

I don't know where you live but there are a lot of things that can make an attractive living fence. My personal favorite is Portugal Laurel. It is evergreen and takes well to pruning. Laurels and Leyland Cypress are nice. Escallonia is a nice one that flowers. Choisya ternata is a nice shiny green, with sweet white flowers and prunes well. I suggest that you visit a garden center where you live and consult the local experts. It depends how many feet wide you want it and how much pruning you want to do.
As to planting, see how easy it is to get your shovel in the ground. If you improve the soil with soil building compost when you plant and water the plants in well and through their first couple of years you should have a great success.
It might be good to talk to your neighbor. My neighbor and I shared the cost of our hedge plants and we have a great living fence.

Answer 4

a "George" Bush can grow like a fence in California or any other state for that matter. Hence the saying, "dumb as a post".

Answer 5

Depends on where you are. Where I live (North Texas), the red tip photina is a popular hedge plant...

Answer 6

Check into boxwoods. They are a good hedge plant and they smell nice.

Answer 7

privet. If you need year around greens, leyland cypress trees grow rapidly and provide privacy. also, the forsynthia is cheap and, grows rapidly as well.

Answer 8

Don't know the actual names of them but think that they are considered to be "Hedges".

Answer 9

yeah boxwood, privit hedge or juniper .