Cheap and effiecient privacy plants?

[jparrucci]

Does anyone have an good suggestions for planting cheaper priced bushes/shrubs to give us some more cover at the cabin? We have a carpenter ant problem and that has led to a few downed trees, and we would like to get some more privacy at the cabin. Looking for something that grows to at least 6ft tall and would give some good privacy cover. It would have to be fairly thick, as it will also hopefully keep the dog in the yard at the cabin; it has been hard to establish a boundary. We are looking to cover a pretty large area. It would get both sun/shade, and basically we want to surround the yard in something. Would lilac work? I've heard that you don't need to buy a plant, but rather cut decent sized parts out of existing plants(have a bunch of those at the home in the cities). Oh, and it is in the arrowhead region, so it would have to be rather weather resistant and hardy for the cold weather and mixed sun/shade.

Any input on what to do would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

[Steve Foss]

Lilacs will work just fine. They grow quickly and provide thick cover and lots of leaves. They also smell beautiful for a week each May and provide great nesting habitat for goldfinches and yellow warblers, both of which you have over on V.

And they're hardy to zone 3, which is where you are.

I'd say get the common lilac, Syringa vulgaris, not one of the hybrids. The hybrids flower longer, but many of them are slower growing and not as tall and thick.

[Powerstroke]

Lilacs will work pretty well and I think red twig dogwood would be another good choice. They grow at the about the same rate and density except the dogwood has a different structure.

[lawdog]

powerstroke, how far apart should red twig dogwoods be planted? I've gotten conflicting answers on this and I just planted 27 of them. Hope I didn't space them wrong...

[LABS4ME]

Red Twig Dogwoods will get 8' around easily. Isanti Dogwood 5' around. Typically for a full screen they should be planted 4-5' O.C. They can be maintained to keep a more compact size, but remember to thin them out of approx. 1/3 of their biggest branches down to the ground each spring. Generally as the plant matures, the size you'll be removing will be the ones thicker than your thumb. If you just "hedge sheer" them, they will become overly woody and will only have foilage on the last 10-12" of their branching and will over time become very "thin", plus the best color of the branching comes on younger wood. This is one species that thrives on rejuveniztion... with each thinning, new growth will come from the base, keeping the plant full.

Good Luck!

Ken