What to plant in these spaces?

[Splaker]

Hey folks, I have a row of blue muffin viburnum along a fence line. This is my first year in the property. I want to fill in the gaps between them to increase my privacy. I was thinking about filling in the spaces (about 8 to 10 feet b/w each plant) with something like white cedars/emerald cedars or perhaps some firs or spruce trees that are on the smaller side, like pyramidal Norway spruce or Korean Firs,etc.. What about some other "filler"? What would work with this type of shrub in terms of creating a nice composition and also providing the screening I desire? I want to keep the screen to under 25' and preferably under 20 feet.

Thank you kindly in advance!

 

[Mockingbird]

How is the ground? Is it very wet back there on the fence? If it is I might go for some Dogwoods, the reds look nice all year around, alternate some of the yellows and it will fill in very natural and colorful in no time. If it is not to wet but pretty full sun you might want to consider some Lilacs. I found that when you do a grove of the lilacs alternate the varieties to prolong the blooms. I have both the heirloom and the french and they go well into late May.

I added peonies a few years ago to some of the fronts of the lilacs that just formed natural coves, I know the peonies bring ants but so far that has not been much of a problem.

 

[Splaker]

The backyard, especially the further back you go, is pretty moist... i think dogwoods would be nice... only thing is that I wouldn't get the "evergreen" screening effect.. but I suppose for a good chunk of the warm season we'd have lots of privacy... which dogwood would you go with? Since the vibrurnums have green foliage after flowering, I think a dogwood with some variegated tendency would be nice.. what do you think? I think i came across some yellowish ones on a nursery site - they would have to be no more than an 8' spread.. maybe 6 or 7 would be better...

thanks

 

[Stephanie]

You could try arborvitae. And if you wanted the arborvitae to stay a certain height, they could be pruned down. I have a hedge of arborvitae and I absolutely love them!

 

[Splaker]

You could try arborvitae. And if you wanted the arborvitae to stay a certain height, they could be pruned down. I have a hedge of arborvitae and I absolutely love them!

Thanks... would you recommend a specific one? Emerald? White? I've thought about cedars... I'm thinking with 8 to 10' I could squeeze 3 emeralds in each spot for a total of 12 plants...

 

[Stephanie]

I have two different kinds that make up my hedge. The emerald are more elegant and hold their distinct shape very well. The American kind grow faster and kinda mesh together as they grow - looking more like a solid wall. I like them both, but I prefer the faster growing variety ;-) Pictured is my American Arborvitae hedge from a few years ago.