Nothing beats a boxwood hedge when looking for privacy, greenery and little to no maintenance throughout the seasons. However, the problem with such hedges is that it takes years to grow them. And during this time, you’ll still need to do a bit of trimming. In fact, your hedge will require trimming a few times a year.
Other than that, once it’s up, nothing can take it down. The hedge will offer excellent protection and privacy against nosy neighbors and windy gusts. It’s easier to look after than if you had a fence or a wall. And on top of that, it also makes a good home for local insects.
Now, before looking around for the perfect boxwood hedges for privacy, let’s take a look at the best varieties for screening and privacy to find the perfect match for your property.
1. Common Boxwood
This common variety is usually the one you see everywhere. Take a walk around your street, and you’ll find plenty of homes with such hedges, not to mention public areas. That’s why local authorities and councils use them too. They offer greenery and fresh air, but they’re easy to look after too.
When left alone without trimming, the common boxwood can reach 15 feet in size. It’s quite a lot, but that will most likely take years. A bit of maintenance is still required. Other than that, you can give it a shape, decide on the thickness and so on.
This option is so common that even when you look for artificial boxwood hedges for privacy, they usually replicate this variety with deep green, oval foliage.
2. English Boxwood
The English boxwood is another great idea if you’re looking for boxwood hedges for privacy. While not as sturdy and thick as the common one, it does have a few benefits as well. First, it’s much denser. English boxwood will give you so much privacy that even light will struggle to go through.
Second, this type of boxwood is suitable for short borders and pathways. At the same time, it means that it’s not suitable if you want a tall hedge to keep your garden private. However, if you need something low and nice to go by the pathways in your garden, you can’t go wrong with the English variety.
Pay attention to its maintenance too. Unless you get an artificial faux hedge, your boxwood will require a bit of watering during prolonged times of drought. Therefore, consider your climate before deciding on the English option for your landscape.
3. Korean Boxwood
Stuck in a climate with harsh winters? Cold temperatures that go way below the freezing point? Lots of snow and ice for weeks or even months every winter? Strong winds? Such a climate can kill the common boxwood, despite its hardy and durable profile.
The Korean alternative could be much better for long term landscaping success. It’s not just different in hardiness, but also in appearance, so it offers a nice change if your whole neighborhood relies on common varieties.
All in all, Korean boxwood hedges for privacy can tackle any type of cold temperature without suffering from severe winter burn or heavy leaf loss. It has small leaves, so once it grows, it offers exquisite privacy. It can be so dense and thick that even sunlight may find it difficult to go through to the other side.
4. Green Velvet Boxwood
The green velvet boxwood is another classic option, yet it’s suitable for mild or relatively cold climates. As long as you don’t have drought for five months a year or freezing temperatures throughout the whole winter, it should be alright. It can take mild weather conditions in any season though.
Such boxwood hedges for privacy are known for the high degree of density. They grow very thick and can tangle, depending on the thickness of the screen. Such issues won’t affect the growth or maintenance though.
Leaves are round and soft, hence the name. Once it’s fully grown and developed, it provides a velvety appearance. You can plant it in nice shapes or rows, since it looks great when organized this way along garden edges and patio borders.
5. Other Varieties
Common boxwood hedges for privacy are by far the best options out there, but if you want something else for a change, your options are more varied. Here are a few other good ideas worth considering:
- Winter gem boxwood is hardy and grows extremely fast. It’s easy to trim and look after. It’s also brighter than other types of boxwood, which brings a vibrant lime-green glow to the yard.
- Dee runk boxwood is narrow and long. Given its appearance, it’s suitable for shapes, columns and other nice shapes, including thin privacy hedges in tight garden spaces.
- Green Mountain boxwood is a pyramidal hybrid, meaning it’s excellent if you like trimming hedges in shapes. It’s very easy to work with for formal structural hedging.
- American boxwood is large and sturdy. If you want plenty of privacy for a big garden, this is your best option for towering screening walls.
Bottom line, these are just some of the classic solutions when interested in boxwood hedges for privacy. Of course, there’s also the artificial alternative, which provides year-round greenery and little to no maintenance. Whatever you choose, make sure it suits the décor and your privacy requirements for years to come.
