Choose The Prettiest Shrubs For Your Hedges

Are you looking to create some privacy in your yard? Perhaps you'd like a manicured hedge that clearly delineates your space. Or maybe you'd like to be a little more covert about your seclusion, selecting beautiful shrubs that also happen to afford you privacy. Choose pretty and hardy shrubs for your yard's hedge.

Hardy Standard Bushes

Standard hedge plants not only provide you with privacy, they also block the wind and buffer noise. Most varieties can also be trimmed into the boxy or even fanciful shapes particular of hedges.

Boxwood, as its name suggests, is a bush for turning into box shapes. The hardy branches withstand frequent clipping while providing dense evergreen foliage. Some varieties grow as tall as 20 feet, though the bush provides an attractive low hedge as well.

While Canadian hemlock can grow as tall as 70 feet, it's another plant that's tolerant to clipping. Its branches can be sheared to create a bushy hedge or screen.

Hybrid yew is a likely bush for manicuring into formal hedges or even topiaries. The hybrid yew adapts to both sun and shade.

Pretty Winter Shrubs

Would you like your hedge to look its best in the gray months of winter? Several bushes produce winter berries and even blooms that brighten the landscape.

Holly is a classic. Evergreen varieties feature shiny green foliage and bright berries in the coldest months. The height ranges drastically, so look for the variety that best fits into your landscape design.

Firethorn is another bush that features winter berries, in this case orange-red. It can grow as tall as 20 feet, but withstands pruning into a hedge. According to Better Homes and Gardens, the hardiest varieties are Yukon Belle, Mohave and Lalandei.

For a little winter blooming, witch hazel is a good selection. The bush produces delicate petals ranging from yellow to red from late fall to early spring. The blooms also produce a pleasant fragrance.

Sweet Spring Bloomers

Sometimes the expected is the most attractive. If you'd like your hedge to provide blooms in spring consider a sweet flowering shrub.

Viburnum produces pink and white spring blossoms with a beautiful fragrance. These shrubs grow as tall as 15 feet, but they can be sheared into a formal hedge.

Deutzia provides a more free-form hedge. The bush grows into mounds of pink or white flowers approximately 10 feet in diameter. The Chardonnay pearls cultivar features fragrant white blossoms.

Fothergilla is another free-form shrub with fragrant white blooms. This bush grows to six feet and provides dense foliage. As a bonus, the leaves turn a showy red-orange in the fall.

Add winter beauty, spring delight or basic privacy to your yard with the best selection of pretty shrubs. Have your landscapers plant them in manicured rows or in free-form arrangements that shield your space with their foliage.