Title:
Creating Outdoor Rooms From http://www.GrowingWisdom.com

Description:
Using Plants To Create Outdoor Rooms One landscape idea that's getting a lot of attention these days is outdoor rooms. More and more people are starting to enjoy the practical benefits of dividing their yards into discrete spaces. There are many reasons to create outdoor rooms. You might want to entertain in one area and sit and contemplate in another. One area might be for the kids or even pets, while the other is for cooking. You might have a water feature in one spot and a fire pit in another. Sometimes you want to see from room to room; other times, you want to build walls and completely separate the rooms. You can use almost any plant material to create your walls, or you can use more conventional fencing materials such as stone or wood. You can even use containers or sculptures. I like the idea of using very vertical plants such as Hicks Yew or Buxus Graham Blandy -- a type of boxwood -- for wall material. Sky Pencil Holly (Ilex crenata) work well, too, but can get winter damage in cold dry winters north and west of Boston. The following chart, created by the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service, shows you some plants well suited for use as room dividers. Always check to make sure that a plant you're interested in can be used in your zone, and make sure you have the right light and soil conditions for the plant. Also think about what plants might differentiate your yard from everyone else's. Look for unique specimens that will not only be the walls of your outdoor room, but a wonderful conversation piece as well. Deciduous trees Common name Latin name Cultivars and Comments Hedge maple Acer campestre Small tree Japanese maple Acer palmatum Many cultivars; small tree Norway maple Acer platanoides 'Columnar' -- tall and narrow Red maple Acer rubrum 'Bowhall' -- narrow; fast growing Freeman maple Acer x freemanii 'Armstrong' -- tall and narrow; fast growing Alder Alnus glutinosa Tolerates wet soil Japanese white birch Betula platyphylla 'Whitespire'; tolerates wet soil, pest resistant European hornbeam Carpinus betulus 'Columnaris', 'Fastigiata' -- narrow Flowering dogwood Cornus florida Many cultivars; understory, small tree Kousa dogwood Cornus kousa Small tree, heat tolerant Washington hawthorn Crataegus phaenopyrum 'Fastigiata' -- small, narrow Ginkgo Ginkgo biloba 'Fastigiata', 'Princeton Sentry' -- narrow Deciduous hollies Ilex decidua, Ilex verticillata Many cultivars; tolerates wet soil; fast growing Goldenraintree Koelreuteria paniculata Summer flowers Crape myrtle Lagerstroemia fauriei, L x indica. Many cultivars; single and multitrunked; fast growing Galaxy magnolia Magnolia x 'Galaxy' Pyramidal, deep pink flowers Crabapple Malus spp. Many broad and narrow cultivars, diverse flower colors Hardy orange Poncirus trifoliata Small tree with thorns Cherry plum Prunus cerasifera Many cultivars; dense, purple leaves Weeping cherry Prunus subhirtella 'Pendula' -- medium tree; weeping branches; flowers Callery pear Pyrus calleryana 'Capital', 'Chanticleer' - upright, very urban tolerant English oak Quercus robur 'Fastigiata' -- narrow Weeping willow Salix babylonica Large tree; weeping branches Tree lilac Syringa reticulata 'Ivory Silk'; small tree, white flowers Bald cypress Taxodium ascendens, T. distichum Tall, pyramidal, tolerates wet soil Evergreen trees Common name Latin name Cultivars and Comments False cypress Chamaecyparis spp. Several narrow or pyramidal species and cultivar Japanese cryptomeria Cryptomeria japonica Pyramidal; fast growing Leyland cypress x Cupressocyparis leylandii Many cultivars -- tall and narrow; fast growing Foster holly Ilex x attenuata 'Fosteri' Narrow, drought tolerant Nellie Stevens holly Ilex x 'Nellie R. Stevens' Dense, narrow American holly Ilex opaca Many cultivars -- tall and pyramidal; tolerates wet soil Chinese juniper Juniperus chinensis 'Torulosa' -- arrow; twisted branches Rocky Mountain juniper Juniperus scopulorum 'Mountbatten', 'Skyrocket' -- narrow Red cedar Juniperus virginiana 'Glauca' -- narrow; silver-blue Hasse magnolia Magnolia grandiflora 'Hasse' -- upright Dwarf southern magnolia Magnolia grandiflora 'Little Gem' -- smallest; slow growing Sweet bay magnolia Magnolia virginiana Tolerates wet soil Japanese red pine Pinus densiflora 'Umbraculifera' -- dwarf, umbrella-shaped Eastern white pine Pinus strobus 'Fastigiata' -- upright Virginia pine Pinus virginiana Dense Arborvitae Thuja spp. Dense, broad and species and cultivars Hemlock Tsuga canadensis Pyramidal; not heat tolerant

Author:
growingwisdom

Tags:
deck, design, garden, home, house, patio, rooms, shrubs, trees,