06. North Privacy Screen
Yew make a better door than a window — I hope.
My first bunch of plants arrived at the end of September of 2022. Yay — very excited to start planting! I ordered a mix of evergreen shrubs and trees. The yews I dedicated for the north privacy screen, a mixed bag of arborvitae, cypress & cryptomeria for the guest house privacy screen, and a few cryptomeria for the south privacy screen.
Reinforcing the Line
I was so excited to finally plant something instead of taking something out. First, I created a dead hedge with all of the blackberry clippings and fallen branches along the north property line. This was a good hack since I needed someplace to put the unwanted plant material plus it created a rudimentary privacy fence while I waited for my plants to grow.
Yew Screen
I planted 35 Hicks Yews and 5 Yew Podocarpus. I needed plants that were shade tolerant and that would provide a homogenous evergreen screen. I wove a straight line of yews between several existing laurel trees.
Plant Details:
Hicks Yew (HY)
Mature Height: 10-15 Feet
Mature Width: 3-4 Feet
Growth Rate: Slow*
Soil Type: Well Drained
Sunlight: Full, Partial, Shade
Yew Podocarpus (YP)
Mature Height: 15-20 Feet
Mature Width: 6-10 Feet
Growth Rate: Slow*
Soil Type: Well Drained
Sunlight: Full, Partial
*I wish I had paid more attention to the growth rate. It is now about six months later, and it looks like the shrubs have not grown one bit! I am hopeful to see some more vigorous growth this spring.
The next step is to hope that they grow!