I am one of those people that can build things but never seem to have
any luck growing things, so I need some expert help here.

The new neighbors next door (adjoining 5-acre plots) recently built
their church (oops, I mean house) and we cannot go out our backdoor
now without feeling that their house is going to sit on top of us and
cannot enjoy backyard privacy while they are in the lawn chairs
watching our every move. (The terrain slopes sharply upward toward
them so their front deck is about 20' higher than our back deck).

Local codes do not permit a giant wall or 15-20' fence but do allow
trees and there is no "view protection" so it really doesn't matter
how tall the trees grow.

We have lots of water (a well producing 33 gallons per minute) and I
have lots of time to drown those new trees in all the water they want.

My choices have been narrowed down to Nor'easter Poplar or Lombardy
Poplar. I've heard stories about both. I plan on planting the 10'
trees about 10' apart to form a veritable wall to block out the view
of the new neighbors. I would like the trees to grow at least 4' per
year and have a width of at least 10' so the line of trees would touch
one another.

Of those two, which would be my best choice? There are no pipes,
drains, etc. anywhere near where the trees will be planted. In fact,
there is nothing man-made anywhere with 75' of where they will be
planted.

We also have numerous deer in the area ( I believe we're in either
zone 3 or 4) so I would encircle the new trees with some sort of
guard.

Of the two mentioned, which would give the best privacy, would be the
least disease and pest resistant and would be the best bang for the
buck?

I have had the Nor'easter poplar quoted as $15 for a 4 footer and the
Lombardy $39 for a 10 footer.

Thanks for any advice.

-The Guy With The Brown Thumb

(I'm using a friend's computer so please excuse the email
address...lol)

In article om,
Guy With The Brown Thumb wrote:


The new neighbors next door (adjoining 5-acre plots) recently built
their church (oops, I mean house) and we cannot go out our backdoor
now without feeling that their house is going to sit on top of us and
cannot enjoy backyard privacy while they are in the lawn chairs
watching our every move. (The terrain slopes sharply upward toward
them so their front deck is about 20' higher than our back deck).

Usually this is a developers trick. Build the house at the bottom of the
hill first then, once it is sold, build the one above and so on, up the
hill, because it will be harder to sell with a house towering over it.

Local codes do not permit a giant wall or 15-20' fence but do allow
trees and there is no "view protection" so it really doesn't matter
how tall the trees grow.

(snip, whack)

I don't know much about trees but I hope your neighbor is to your north
because, you will be throwing quite a shadow.

Thanks for any advice.

-The Guy With The Brown Thumb

(I'm using a friend's computer so please excuse the email
address...lol)

Good luck,

- Billy
Coloribus gustibus non disputatum (mostly)

"Guy With The Brown Thumb" wrote in
message ps.com...
I am one of those people that can build things but never seem to have
any luck growing things, so I need some expert help here.

The new neighbors next door (adjoining 5-acre plots) recently built
their church (oops, I mean house) and we cannot go out our backdoor
now without feeling that their house is going to sit on top of us
and
cannot enjoy backyard privacy while they are in the lawn chairs
watching our every move. (The terrain slopes sharply upward toward
them so their front deck is about 20' higher than our back deck).

Local codes do not permit a giant wall or 15-20' fence but do allow
trees and there is no "view protection" so it really doesn't matter
how tall the trees grow.

We have lots of water (a well producing 33 gallons per minute) and I
have lots of time to drown those new trees in all the water they
want.

My choices have been narrowed down to Nor'easter Poplar or Lombardy
Poplar. I've heard stories about both. I plan on planting the 10'
trees about 10' apart to form a veritable wall to block out the view
of the new neighbors. I would like the trees to grow at least 4'
per
year and have a width of at least 10' so the line of trees would
touch
one another.

Of those two, which would be my best choice? There are no pipes,
drains, etc. anywhere near where the trees will be planted. In
fact,
there is nothing man-made anywhere with 75' of where they will be
planted.


Both seem to be BIG trees. Poplars grow fast and drop all kinds of
crud and branches as they age. They are not necessarily recommended
for city lots.

http://forestry.about.com/od/treepla...d_lombardy.htm

Do you have a septic system? Watch out for poplars.

Bob

On Jun 7, 11:49 am, "Bob F" wrote:
"Guy With The Brown Thumb" wrote in
The new neighbors next door (adjoining 5-acre plots) recently built
their church (oops, I mean house) and we cannot go out our backdoor
now without feeling that their house is going to sit on top of us
and cannot enjoy backyard privacy while they are in the lawn chairs
watching our every move. (The terrain slopes sharply upward toward
them so their front deck is about 20' higher than our back deck).

There are no pipes, drains, etc. anywhere near where the trees will be planted. In fact, there is nothing man-made anywhere with 75' of where they will be planted.

###################################

Both seem to be BIG trees. Poplars grow fast and drop all kinds of
crud and branches as they age. They are not necessarily recommended
for city lots.

(The new neighbors next door (adjoining 5-acre plots)...


Do you have a septic system? Watch out for poplars.

(There are no pipes, drains, etc. anywhere near where the trees will
be planted. In fact, there is nothing man-made anywhere with 75' of
where they will be planted.)

Bob

(My choices have been narrowed down to Nor'easter Poplar or Lombardy
Poplar. I've heard stories about both. Of those two, which would be
my best choice?)

---GWTBT

On Jun 7, 10:37 am, Billy Rose wrote:
I don't know much about trees but I hope your neighbor is to your north
because, you will be throwing quite a shadow.

66666666666666666666666666

They are to the east.


777777777777777777777777777
Good luck,
Billy
Coloribus gustibus non disputatum (mostly)

999999999999999999999999999

But my question, which of the two would be the best choice?

In article .com,
Guy With The Brown Thumb wrote:

On Jun 7, 10:37 am, Billy Rose wrote:
I don't know much about trees but I hope your neighbor is to your north
because, you will be throwing quite a shadow.

66666666666666666666666666

They are to the east.


777777777777777777777777777
Good luck,
Billy
Coloribus gustibus non disputatum (mostly)

999999999999999999999999999

But my question, which of the two would be the best choice?

Providing that the new Thousand Year Reich doesn't confiscate your
seeds, you are about to lose the warm afternoon Sun for your garden.

- Billy
Coloribus gustibus non disputatum (but down with Fascism)

Guy With The Brown Thumb said:


(My choices have been narrowed down to Nor'easter Poplar or Lombardy
Poplar. I've heard stories about both. Of those two, which would be
my best choice?)

Neither, with the Lombardy poplar being even more important to avoid.

This is not something you should cheap out on.
--
Pat in Plymouth MI ('someplace.net' is comcast)

Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.
(attributed to Don Marti)

it is better to plant two rows that way they overlap and block
quickly. Ingrid

On Thu, 7 Jun 2007 11:49:19 -0700, "Bob F"
wrote:
I would like the trees to grow at least 4'
per year and have a width of at least 10' so the line of trees would
touch one another.

I can also suggest a whole NEW approach that may cost you absolutely
nothing.

........... invite the biggest people you know over to sunbathe in
their bikinis. Speedos?

........ have parties where everyone must bring binocs and spend at
least 15 minutes using them on the house up the slope.

......... do something, equally obnoxious in the back yard that is
still within the rules of the covenant that will force the owners of
the church oops, McMansion to put up the barrier, which is infinitely
easier on their upslope than it is on yours. In fact, before doing
ANYTHING go have a talk with them about privacy and it is 1. likely
they are planning some privacy plantings already and 2. if not,
suggest a cost sharing.

Ingrid

wrote in message
. com...
it is better to plant two rows that way they overlap and block
quickly. Ingrid

On Thu, 7 Jun 2007 11:49:19 -0700, "Bob F"
wrote:
I would like the trees to grow at least 4'
per year and have a width of at least 10' so the line of trees
would
touch one another.

My neighbor has a couple poplars right on my southern property line.
They block the sun for hours a day from an area I'd love to use as
garden, dump branch chunks all over my yard, and threaten my house
when they decide to fall over. I wouldn't wish that on anyone. A
pyramidalis variety or emerald green aborvitea would make a much more
managable hedge. Or, check
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/l...161313132.html

Bob

See Planting section for help.

--
Many tree problems are associated with the following:

Troubles in the Rhizosphere
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/shigo/RHIZO.html

Unhealthy Trees from the Nursery / Improper Planting
http://home.ccil.org/~treeman/sub1.html and
Look up "Tree Planting"
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/shigo/RHIZO.html

Improper Mulching - http://home.ccil.org/~treeman/sub3.html and
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/M/index.html Look up "Mulch"

Improper Pruning
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/tree_pruning/

Improper Fertilization (See A Touch of Chemistry)
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/shigo/CHEM.html

Sincerely,
John A. Keslick, Jr.
Arborist
http://home.ccil.org/~treeman
and www.treedictionary.com
Beware of so-called tree experts who do not understand tree biology.
Storms, fires, floods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions keep reminding us
that we are not the boss.

"Guy With The Brown Thumb" wrote in message
ps.com...
I am one of those people that can build things but never seem to have
any luck growing things, so I need some expert help here.

The new neighbors next door (adjoining 5-acre plots) recently built
their church (oops, I mean house) and we cannot go out our backdoor
now without feeling that their house is going to sit on top of us and
cannot enjoy backyard privacy while they are in the lawn chairs
watching our every move. (The terrain slopes sharply upward toward
them so their front deck is about 20' higher than our back deck).

Local codes do not permit a giant wall or 15-20' fence but do allow
trees and there is no "view protection" so it really doesn't matter
how tall the trees grow.

We have lots of water (a well producing 33 gallons per minute) and I
have lots of time to drown those new trees in all the water they want.

My choices have been narrowed down to Nor'easter Poplar or Lombardy
Poplar. I've heard stories about both. I plan on planting the 10'
trees about 10' apart to form a veritable wall to block out the view
of the new neighbors. I would like the trees to grow at least 4' per
year and have a width of at least 10' so the line of trees would touch
one another.

Of those two, which would be my best choice? There are no pipes,
drains, etc. anywhere near where the trees will be planted. In fact,
there is nothing man-made anywhere with 75' of where they will be
planted.

We also have numerous deer in the area ( I believe we're in either
zone 3 or 4) so I would encircle the new trees with some sort of
guard.

Of the two mentioned, which would give the best privacy, would be the
least disease and pest resistant and would be the best bang for the
buck?

I have had the Nor'easter poplar quoted as $15 for a 4 footer and the
Lombardy $39 for a 10 footer.

Thanks for any advice.

-The Guy With The Brown Thumb

(I'm using a friend's computer so please excuse the email
address...lol)

On Jun 7, 10:37 am, Billy Rose wrote:
I don't know much about trees but I hope your neighbor is to your
north
because, you will be throwing quite a shadow.
66666666666666666666666666
They are to the east.
777777777777777777777777777
Good luck,
Billy
Coloribus gustibus non disputatum (mostly)
999999999999999999999999999
Providing that the new Thousand Year Reich doesn't confiscate your
seeds, you are about to lose the warm afternoon Sun for your garden.
- Billy

??????????????????????????????????

Billy, are we on the same orb in the solar system? I stated above the
neighbors are to the East and therefore the trees would be between our
house (west of the neighbors) and their McMansion (east of us) and the
garden/lawn area is between our house and the trees.

My question = when did the afternoon sun start setting in the East and
thereby eliminating its warmth to my garden/lawn to the west of the
trees? Hmmmmm.....

On Jun 8, 7:57 am, wrote:
........ do something, equally obnoxious in the back yard that is
still within the rules of the covenant that will force the owners of
the church oops, McMansion to put up the barrier, which is infinitely
easier on their upslope than it is on yours.

444444444444444444444444444444444

Absolutely true, it would be far easier for them, since they have the
elevation, to construct a much smaller barrier that would obliterate
their "downward" view but still permit the distant view of the
mountains.

0000000000000000000000000000000000

In fact, before doing
ANYTHING go have a talk with them about privacy and it is 1. likely
they are planning some privacy plantings already and 2. if not,
suggest a cost sharing.

444444444444444444444444444444444

Tried that but he is a born-again asshole who seems to only be
interested in his narcissitic demeanor and objectives.

33333333333333333333333333333

Ingrid

Another suggestion I've had from a nursery is to use Norway Maple
trees in between the Poplar platings and slightly behind them.

"Guy With The Brown Thumb" wrote in
message oups.com...
Another suggestion I've had from a nursery is to use Norway Maple
trees in between the Poplar platings and slightly behind them.

Or plant a slower growing but more managable hedge plant along the
property line, and then another row of the poplars, so you can cut the
poplars down in several years when they get out of control, and leave
the grown other hedge to take its place.

Bob