Hi,

I have a 15'x30' fenced backyard. I used to have 6 tall podocarpus trees (25-30 ft) planted right by the fence that gave me great privacy. Due to my neighbors complaints, I had to have them removed. Now my backyard is pretty much empty.

I have no gardening experience, so I've been doing a lot research trying to find plants that can give me back some privacy. I need evergreen trees/hedges that go above the 6 ft fence by at least a few feet. The trees need to stay small (at most 15-20ft). I don't want something that creates a mess by shedding lots of leaves/berries/seeds. Since these will be close to the house, the roots need to be well behaved as well. Something low maintenance is also desired.

After all my research (including this forum) I came up with a few candidates. I know they may not be the most exciting plants, but I'm new to this stuff.

Photinia fraseri

Waxleaf Trivet

Pittosporum tobira

Hollywood juniper

Dwarf meyer lemon

Dwarf satsuma tangerine

Dwarf hass avocado

Dwarf peach

Ceanothus 'Ray Hartman'

I really likes Arbutus Marina and Arbutus Udero, but decided against them due to possible messy fruits.

Any suggestions or advice against the list above will be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

Liz