I live on a one ace lot in the Texas panhandle. I lined our lot with a split rail cedar fence as I didn't want to put up a privacy fence as many of the neighbors have done. My plan is to line the back half of our property with some type of natural privacy screen and I'd like some advice on what I should/could use for this project. I'm considering anything from Austrian pines to pampas grass to hybrid poplars. Heck, I had a friend suggest I plant sunflowers each year and use them for a temporary screen. I'm open to any suggestions but my main concerns are aesthetics and cost as I'll be screening roughly 250 to 300 feet.

I plan on consulting local landscaping designers but thought I might get some suggestions from the Outdoors forum on TexAgs.

Get some hedge type bushes that grow densely, and keep their leaves through winter. Then your occasional trimming will dictate the height of the hedge..or you can space them so they make a natural hedge once they reach more or less full size. That's what my parents did on their acre. I can't recall the shrubs they used, I'll have to get back to you on that one.

I have flotenia(sp?) that works really well.

Photinia or variegated privet would work well. I saw a commercial ofor a tree that allegedly grows up to 15 feet a year, but I can't remember the name of it.

Yes, photenia ... very thick, hardy and grow quickly.

The Photinia has the red tips on the leaves certain times of the year, right? I have those in my front yard along the house, and they are nice shrubs. Very low-maintenance.

Ornamental Pear trees grow fast, and if you plant them side by side, they will grow into a wall. Don't know if you can get them to grow, but Sweetgum grows fast down here in East TX.

Would anyone suggest maiden grass (miscanthus sinensus) or pampas grass? It seems to look more native. I don't necessarily need a 15' plus screen as I have other large multi trunk red oaks scattered throughout the property.

Check with your local NRCS office. This is the time of year they have their windbreak tree sales up there. There are a BUNCH of different shrubs you can plant up there that will be evergreen and get to the 5 ft height you want. You could probably mix in a few Austrian pines, Colorado Blue Spruce. Rocky Mountain Junipers, or a host of others.

If the Canyon office doesn't have them, check with the Amarillo office.

I'm not too familiar with things that will take that sort of cold up there. What town do you live in?

I would suspect Pampas grass would work, but I despise it because of the serrated leaves that cut skin. It gets VERY thick and is a haven for rats and therefore snakes.

If you want to go with something easy, try some native praire grasses like Big Bluestem or Indian Switchgrass. They'll get up to 5' tall and should take very little maintenance. Miscanthus will also work, but they top out around 3' tall & they aren't native.

I'm in Canyon.

FYI Canyon, I worked in Dumas for 7 years.

Heavens sake don't use pampus grass. It's terrible and almost impossible to get rid of.

B-1,
I am sorry.

Do a search under those "hybrid poplar" shade trees. I hear that you can stand still and watch them growing, and that some varieties are designed to be stagger-planted as screens.

When I was growing up in Amarillo, a number of people we knew planted privacy screens with "Russian Olives" (Eleagnus angustifolia). They grew incredibly fast and tolerated the vagaries of panhandle weather very well. They are evergreen and tough as hell. A light pruning every spring and they are good to go.

Will wax myrtles stay evergreen that far north? If so, they make great fast growingscreen shrubs/trees.

Russian Olive is also very invasive, please don't plant. For more info look at
http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/elaang/all.html

Here's a couple other options to play with
http://www.txsmartscape.com/WestTX/main.asp
http://vegspec.nrcs.usda.gov/vegSpec/index.jsp
http://websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov/app/

Use the websoil survey to determine your soil to plug into VegSpec. That will give you an idea of where to start (though plants recommended may not be easily commercially available and it occasionally has a creative look at what "native' is.)
The Texas Smartscape will be a little more general, but that version is specific to the Lubbock/Canyon area. Personally, I rarely recommend anything that is not native, but that is my personal beef with that particular site.

For any further questions, please refer to B-1 83 As he suggested, talk to your local NRCS agent.




"axe, cow, plow, gun ,and FIRE"--know them and use them

[This message has been edited by ursusguy (edited 4/10/2007 12:13a).]

Texas Sage (Cenizo) will probably work in Canyon. It would get too cold for Wax Myrtles I think. I've had them get freeze damage in Austin.

BTW, Ursus - that Texas SmartScape link is a pretty good format....they just don't have many plants on it & certainly not many natives!

Cinnizo will freeze out. Look at evergreen sumac or choke cherry.

Apache, the west Texas version of SmartScape has only been in development for a couple years now (based on the site, I think they got off to an enthusiastic start then died off a bit). The version for north-central Texas is much more developed.

The "native" issue was a major source of contention in development. Some advocated for native to the ecoregion, some simply native to Texas. Those in the nursery industry were happy either way, and liked the addition (ie-most) of the plants that were adapted to the area (a certain government agency would also fall into this category) and pushed for the addition of those species.-----Personally, I am very leary of any "adapted" plant, especially in drier climates. They may be good for water conservation purposes, but also increases their potential to become invasive down the road. Many of our invasive exotics (yes, some natives can be invasive), were introduced with good intentions (Johnsongrass, Salt Cedar, nandina, various non-native privets, Russian Olive) and now we can hardly get rid of them. There is growing evidence that one major source of invasive exotic plant species is landscaping in urban/suburban areas.--Remember that invasive plants species is one of the major causes of habitat loss.

Sorry to hijack the thread, just wanted to add some food for thought. Back to the plant recommendations

"axe, cow, plow, gun ,and FIRE"--know them and use them

[This message has been edited by ursusguy (edited 4/10/2007 9:40a).]

B-1 83,

Yep, you're right about Cenizo freezing up there. I thought it would be more cold tolerant, but it's not.

As for the Evergreen Sumac, I like it but I don't plant it alot. It grows a little wild for most people's taste, and it grows slow too. I'm not familiar with the Choke Cherry, but from the scientific name it's related to a Cherry Laurel - a decent screening plant if its roots stay dry.

ursus - I'll check out the rest of that site sometime. The format is great for homeowners, but nothing beats talking to your local landscape contractor.

Russian Olive!!

If you were my neighbor and planted Russian Olives I would burn your house to the ground and shoot your dogs.