Columnar Trees and Shrubs for Privacy

Since my lot is only a quarter of an acre, I have planted many columnar plants (and placed my basalt column, above) to add height without taking up too much space on the ground.  And since we can see parts of sixty-three neighboring homes from various points in our backyard, I use columnar plants to add privacy.  There is an ever-growing list of columnar plants available, especially for milder climates than mine.  Monrovia's website plant finder (under Advanced Filter, Growth Habit) allows you to search for columnar plants for your hardiness zone.

I planted columnar 'Spring Snow' crabapples (20-25' T x 15-20' W) on the east and west sides of the backyard to screen the view of the neighbors while leaving sunny beds where my flowers can grow.  In addition to their oval crown, these trees have beautiful, sweet smelling white flowers in spring and no messy fruit.  Unfortunately, here in Spokane we have a long season where these trees are leafless and don't provide much screening.
Although I love my eight 'Spring Snow' crabapple trees, my local nurseryman - whose nursery has been open as long as I've been alive, so he knows a lot - told me that these trees are falling out of favor with growers because they are susceptible to fire blight.  This fungal disease can strike in spring and causes twigs and leaves to look as if they've been burned black.  Infected trees should be sprayed immediately with a fire blight-rated pesticide, and infected parts should be pruned out, wrapped in plastic and put into the trash to avoid spreading more spores.  I haven't had a problem with this, fingers crossed.

Recently my husband caught this photo of Santa laying eggs in our neighbor's yard.  We endured this view for several weeks from our bedroom window before Santa left his eggs behind and went to rest for a few months.  As my trees and our neighbors' trees grow, this scene will be blocked during the growing season, but I wish I had planted more tall evergreens to cover it year-round.

Two years ago, I talked my husband into pulling out some boxwood shrubs and planting two columnar Norway spruce trees (Picea abies 'Cupressina').  These columnar trees are said to reach thirty feet tall and five to six feet wide at maturity.  Both are strategically planted to block views of the neighbors - especially their windows - when they reach full size.

The spruces have put on decent growth each year, and they'd surely grow more quickly in climates with a longer growing season.  I can think of several spots where I'd like to plant more of them, but that would require removing other beautiful plants.  It's so hard to balance functional evergreens with favorite beautiful plants.

This photo includes the young columnar spruces plus 'Green Tower' boxwoods (9' T x 2' W) and 'Fine Line' buckthorns (7' T x 2-3' W).  I have ten of the GT boxwoods and seven of the FL buckthorns planted around the yard.  Both shrubs are easy to prune to the height and width you desire, and they can be planted singly or in a row to create a hedge.  Some types of buckthorn are invasive, but FL is not.

This GT boxwood in the front yard greets visitors as they come to the front yard.  Kind of like a plant butler.  I should call it Jeeves.

A 'Caesar's Brother' Siberian iris at center is columnar in spring and vase shaped later in the growing season.  Many grasses have a lovely columnar form, like 'Karl Forster' feather reed grass, but I avoid ornamental grasses since they give me a rash and make me sneeze.  To the right of the photo above, two of my 'Fine Line' buckthorns add height to the bed.  This spring I decided they were too tall, and it was quick work to trim two feet of height off the top.

Last year I found room for a fifth dogwood - wish I had room for a dozen more - and planted this columnar 'Starlight' tree (Cornus kousa x nuttallii) at the corner of the dining room addition.  It's reported to bloom heavily and grow vigorously to a height of thirty feet and width of twenty feet.  Yes, it's obviously going to require pruning in this spot.  Good thing I took a pruning class in college.  Eventually it will give late afternoon and evening shade to the patio in midsummer.

At right is a columnar apple tree from White Flower Farm.  I don't grow a lot of food, but I had the idea that a columnar apple would be fun.  We'll see how it works out.  Meanwhile, the upright shape is lovely.

If you live in a crowded suburban neighborhood like mine, screening views is important even if you don't have a large yard.  Columnar plants - especially evergreens - are a good option for creating privacy without taking up too much room.  Please learn from my mistake and plan for privacy so you don't have to look at your neighbors' junk or allow them to peer at you through second story windows.  Let Santa lay his eggs in private.

The Usual Suspects of Early Spring

There aren't that many choices for flowers in early spring, but after a dark winter these hardy little bloomers never feel boring to me.  Above is a group of 'Ruby Giant' crocus.  The contrast between the orange stamens, silvery violet inside, and magenta-violet outside is really lovely if you lean down to see it better.

These little guys make a nice S-shape in the west backyard bed.  They're leading us on to sunshine and blue skies.

If yellow sun and blue skies aren't willing to show up, 'Harmony' dwarf iris will play the understudy.  It's hard to capture the true blue color, but it's vibrant and yummy.

Pale blue glory of the snow (Chionodoxa) contrasts with reddish-yellow 'Angelina' sedum in the background.

'Pink Giant' chionodoxa are so softly colored that I never seem to get a good photograph of them, but they're lovely in concert with the 'Grand Maitre' cocus.

More 'Grand Maitre' crocus emerge from woolly thyme with deep red peony stems in the background.

This 'Pink Teacup' hellebore plant is so cheerful that it deserves a spot in this post as well as the last one.  It will still be blooming in May when the little bulbs are long gone.

All of these cute mini bulb blooms combined with boxwood leaves from a protected corner to make this happy Easter centerpiece.  The crystal basket came from my gardener grandmother who passed away several years ago, and this was the first time I'd used it.

Poised for Spring

February teased Spokane with spring-like temperatures at the beginning and more cold and snow in the middle.  Some of my hellebore buds turned to brown mush after temperatures plummeted from nearly 60 degrees Fahrenheit down to zero.  March feels more like a normal Spokane spring:  still chilly but almost pleasant when the sun is out and the wind is slow. 

This year I'm hoping to do a better job of comparing the changes in my garden through the seasons, so I went out and took a bunch of photos of the garden in its current bare state.

An 'Otto Luyken' laurel, 'Blue Star' juniper, 'Green Velvet' boxwood and 'Green Tower' boxwood give the only color in this shot of garden.

The west garden is clean and ready for growth.  A new layer of composted bark fines makes everything look more tidy.

Here is the west side of the backyard path.  This year I left a lot of the fallen crabapple and lilac leaves in place under a thin layer of the composted bark fines.  Decomposing leaves can add valuable organic material to the garden, but I'm not sure if they'll break down well during our drier summers.  So it's an experiment.

The northwest corner is a continual work in progress. My latest plan is to remove the 'Invincibelle Spirit' hydrangeas (currently cut to the ground) from both sides of the arbor along the fence and plant more 'Green Mountain' boxwoods instead.  The boxwoods will be lower maintenance and make an attractive, appropriately-scaled backdrop for this area year-round.

This summer the main sunny backyard bed will be filled with dahlias, lilies, agastache and Russian sage if all goes according to plan.

I love sitting in the NE corner bench and looking west at this view. 

The swing set is getting an update this year.  We're replacing the little swings with one big bench swing that is more comfortable for older people like me.  There were a few protests from my youngest son (who actually hasn't spent much time swinging), but the rest of the family will get more use from the bench.

Here is the east backyard bed.  A month from now this will be covered in green, and six months from now it will be full of tall perennials.  For now, the garden and I are poised for spring.