Screens and Windbreaks
Top Trees for Privacy & Protection
Trees are beautiful, provide habitat for wildlife, clean the air, and increase property value. But did you also know strategically planting the right tree in the right place can have a big impact on your energy bill? In the winter, cold winds can increase your heating cost. Plant a row of evergreen trees on the north and northwest side of your property approximately one to two tree lengths from the house to break the wind. Evergreen trees also act as a barrier and provide privacy for your property.
Read on to learn more about a few of our favorite trees for screens and windbreaks.
Read on to learn more about a few of our favorite trees for screens and windbreaks.
Dwarf Carolina Cherry Laurel
- Evergreen tree or multi-branched shrub with an upright, compact habit
- Glossy, green leaves with fragrant, white flowers on small spikes in spring
- Use as screen or hedge
- Full sun to part shade
- Water-wise, attracts birds and butterflies
- 8’-10’ tall x 6’-8’ wide
Red Tip Photinia
- Evergreen shrub or small tree with a dense, rounded habit
- Leaves emerge bright red, maturing to dark green, with clusters of small, white flowers in spring
- Use for hedges, screens, espalier, border
- Full sun
- 10’-15’ tall x 10’-15’ wide
Bay Laurel
- Evergreen shrub or tree with a compact, pyramidal habit
- Wide, leathery, aromatic leaves have culinary value
- Easily trained into formal shapes; use as a screen, tree, or topiary
- Full sun or partial shade
- Water-wise, deer resistant, attracts birds
- 12’-40’ tall x 12’-40’ wide
Juniper ‘Spartan’
- Evergreen shrub with a dense, columnar habit
- Dense, rich, deep green foliage
- Prunes well into topiary shapes, such as spirals and poodles
- Use as a vertical accent or in groups
- Full sun or partial shade
- Water-wise, deer resistant
- 15’ tall x 3’-5’ wide
Fern Pine
- Evergreen tree or shrub with an upright, rounded habit
- Narrow leaves emerge shiny dark green, maturing to blue-gray
- Use as container plant, espalier, screen, specimen, windbreak
- Full sun or partial shade
- Deer resistant
- 20’-60’ tall x 10’-20’ wide
Thuja ‘Green Giant’
- Evergreen with a narrow, pyramidal habit that can grow several feet per year
- Green to blue-green foliage in dense sprays from the base of the plant to the top
- Little to no pruning required
- Deer resistant
- Use as tall screen or hedge
- Full sun to partial shade
- 30’-50’ tall x 10’-20’ wide
Arbutus ‘Marina’
- Evergreen tree with an upright habit
- Oval, dark green, glossy leaves with showy, drooping clusters of rosy pink, urn-shaped flowers fall to late winter
- Use as a screen, border, firescape
- Full sun
- Water-wise, deer resistant, attracts butterflies and birds
- 30’-40’ tall x 30’-40’ wide
Coastal Redwood ‘Aptos Blue’
- Fast-growing evergreen tree with a dense, pyramidal habit
- Soft, blue-green foliage on horizontal branches
- Provide space and plant as screen or specimen
- Full sun
- Deer resistant
- 50’-90’ tall x 15’-30’ wide
