Hi, This is my first post to this group, and I have appreciated reading all of the helpful advice available here. Now I would like to ask the knowledgable and helpful folks here for some ideas to improve the privacy of my backyard.
I would like to plant a few evergreen trees and several plants along a fence (approx 60 ft long) where I have a varying width of 5 to 8 ft of soil available. Ideally, I would like everything to stay less than about 25ft tall (without trimming), and not be excessively messy, attract swarms of bees, or have excessively pervasive roots. I currently have a small magnolia tree (currently approx 15 ft tall) which is along the same line as what I would like. I have enough room for 3 trees. In between these trees, I would like to plant tall evergreen plants to help fill in the open space between the trees. My idea is to plant items that are often used for hedges such as photinia and privit, but I would let them grow without any shaping.
I have been working the soil over the summer and I have brought in several yards of humus planting mix, working it into the existing clay and hardpan, and I believe that the soil will now drain well. My location is SF bay area; hot summers and mild winters with an occasional hard freeze.
Any ideas and suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Thanks, Mike from Santa Rosa