The Sun-Loving Evergreen With Stunning Color That Adds Privacy To Your Yard

While you can find plenty of privacy screen and fence ideas from HGTV stars, if you're looking for a beautiful screen in your yard, choosing a living evergreen plant species is ideal because it means you get coverage all year round. It's important to select just the right tree or shrub if the spot for your screen is in full sun or it's a fairly narrow space that you want to fill. You'll be delighted to learn that there's one juniper cultivar that not only has a compact columnar growth habit but can also add some stunning color, as well. This attractive tree is known as Juniper scopulorum 'Skyrocket', and it will make the perfect hedge if you live in USDA hardiness zones 4 through 9.

'Skyrocket' is a cultivar of the Rocky Mountain juniper, which is another one of those evergreen trees that give you privacy all year round, and can grow to a height of around 15 feet. Bred to fit into tight spaces, it only spreads to a width of around 2 feet, making it absolutely ideal for growing as a screen or hedge. What you'll love about this tree is that it has attractive blue-green foliage that glistens silver when the sunlight hits the branches. It also has shedding bark in a lovely reddish-brown color. Once planted, this tree grows at a moderate rate of around 1 foot per year.

'Skyrocket' juniper is one of those trees that you can virtually plant and just watch it grow. It doesn't require any maintenance, except for some watering while it's getting established. You can plant your juniper privacy screen in full sun, but this tree will handle partial shade as well. It's not fussed about soil type, as long as the ground doesn't stay consistently wet. If you want a nice tight hedge, space your plants around 3 feet apart, but for a more decorative, open-plan screen, you can allow more room between the individual trees. With this type of planting you can intersperse your junipers with other evergreen shrubs to brighten up your yard throughout the entire year.

Once planted, give your trees a drink around once a week if you don't get any rain. This will help the roots to establish themselves nicely in the ground. After around 2 years, you'll find you won't need to water unless you're facing an extended period of dry weather, as these trees are drought-tolerant. Best of all, thanks to their beautiful columnar growth habit, they won't require pruning either, so you can just sit back and enjoy their gorgeous foliage and lovely structure for years to come.