Buffering the View

Adjacent to our farm is a neighbour that we don't care much for.  <insert lots of reasons>  He's built his... erm... highly regulated crop 'farm' on his solar 'farm' along one of our borders.  The building where he does his growing is illegally too close to the border and the smell is horrendous when the plants are in bloom.  

We're fortunate to have quite a lovely, big property with hiking trails and all.  The ridge could be quite picturesque if it weren't for his panels and smelly building.  We would like very much to put some fast-growing and useful trees up along that border so that we (and other folks coming to enjoy our farm trails) can make like he doesn't even exist.  We'd like to make ourselves a happy little bubble.

We're in Massachusetts zone 5/6 depending upon which USDA version you're looking at.  I do need to do a soil test up there.  We've only ever used it for grazing and hiking.  Drier, but not overly so.  Generally sandy loam soils of one type and another over the farm.  Quite deep.

Looking for one or two species that will grow quickly and tall, as well as some lovely understory trees, shrubs, and plants.  We've got to cover just about 175' along our stone wall.

Hi Nissa, I feel for you. Hopefully someone has some good suggestions for your area. What sort of height are you aiming for? Usually pioneer trees are quickest growing - things like alder and aspen. You may want an evergreen though to give year round sheilding.
I did a search using the pfaf.org database here and it came up with a few suggestions for fast growing plants between 5-10m for zone 5. Many of these are climbers, but several willows, alder, maple as well as some attractive flowering trees are suggested. Hope this helps.

Hi Nissa and sorry about your conundrum.

To really block out a view quickly I would think seriously about either Poplar or hybrid Poplar-Cottonwood trees.  Both grow very fast.  The true Poplar trees will shoot right up and in no time will block a significant amount of the offending neighbor, but they won't live all that long and it is hard to grow an understory as the Poplars will have to be spaced very close to block the view.  A Hybrid Poplar-Cottonwood will grow almost as quickly and has a more traditional canopy.  I can think of a few trees that have a wonderful fragrance--honeysuckle and Russian Olive come to mind but they can be quite invasive and I don't even know if they are allowed in MA.  Wild Rose used to grow along fence lines near me when I grew up, before the farmer killed them with 'cides--too bad because they were both beautiful and incredibly fragrant.  And I mean those roses were FAR more sweet and fragrant than any rose that I have ever seen in a flower shop and honestly I liked the look of all those small (about 1/3-1/2 sized flower shop rose) pink and white roses that grew all along the fence line.  Judging from your image, you look like you have a fence as a border between you and your neighbor.  Maybe you could get some wild roses to climb along that fence and/or other brush in the area.

And as has already been mentioned, native wild brush will generally do well, especially if given a thick belt instead of a singular line.  Maybe you could mix some or all of the above suggestions with some native brush to make a really thick hedge that will be virtually impossible to se through.

Lastly, I have no idea when your neighbor's crop goes into bloom, but everything I just mentioned tends to be especially fragrant in the Spring.  If the timing does not work, maybe we can find some other fragrant plant that would help mask the odor in a more appropriate time.

These are just a few ideas so maybe some will be of help.  At any rate, please let us know how things work out.

Eric

I agree with Eric.

A friend gave us a cutting off his Hybrid Poplar.  He told us to just stick it in the ground, water and it will grow.

It sure did and fast. It reached 10' tall in just a few years.  I just can't remember how long it took.

I prefer the Hybrid Poplar over the Cottonwood because Cottonwood has this "cotton" that blows its seeds everywhere.

And I love the idea of wild rose as a companion.

Best wishes and let us know what you decided on and how it worked out.

Anne makes a great point about the "cotton" from the cottonwood.  The good news is that there are newer varieties of cottonwood--including hybrid poplar-cottonwoods--that are bred so that they don't produce any of the "cotton."  The cotton can be messy so if that bothers you and you are still interested in the tree, make sure that it is a "cottonless" cottonwood.  otherwise, there are a variety of poplars, both the tall and skinny columnar types and a variety with more of a traditional canopy.

Again, good luck.

Eric

Such a difficult situation Nissa. You may want to consider the approach implemented here. In addition to plant selections, I have found fast relief from problem edges using BERMS! Contouring the land can create cut-and-fill blocking solutions quickly. Here is where permaculture design really shines. A map of orientations, low spots, drainage issues, prevailing winds and such is super important. Take your time with your drawings and get a master plan started for the ugly zone. Most of the problem areas around me have been blocked with 4' berms covered in 6' native plants (10' impact). The highest berm here is 8' above ground plus 4 ' deep for the holding pond. You may have ideas for earth-berm structures. That blight in your view-shed could draw forth your earthworks artist and your next landscape architecture creative wonder.

Amy's suggestion about the berm is a really good idea.

Amy said, "Most of the problem areas around me have been blocked with 4' berms covered in 6' native plants (10' impact).

And Eric's suggestion about the "tall and skinny columnar types" is another good one.

We had a neighbor buy next to us and when he put in something we did not want to look at we planted Lombardy Poplars (tall and skinny columnar types.)

I totally get wanting to have your lovely space feel tucked in and private and you've already gotten some great suggestions. I wanted to add Sumac (either Staghorn or Smooth) as another super fast growing option. I had a Staghorn Sumac spring up in my garden and in the course of one summer, it went from a stick I had overlooked to well over head height. Last summer was the third year since I spotted the original one and now they're a colony of many Sumacs with the first one being fifteen feet high with a canopy of equal spread. The runners once they showed up also passed head height in a season. They're on their way to being a serious grove. I'm really hoping that there are males and females in the group so there will be berries (Sumac are dioecious). The berries are beautiful, great food for wildlife and make a delicious and medicinal tea for people too!

You know, cottonwoods emit a strong-smelling oil. It's an earthy smell, and some people probably find it objectionable. But it doesn't smell like skunk the way that your neighbor's crop does. I wonder if cottonwood or other scented trees could be planted to cancel out or override the neighbor's smell?

Cottonwoods smell during the early spring when they break bud, and then again during June or so when they release their cotton. I don't know if cottonless trees would give the smell.