Winter Planting: The Best Hedges to Plant in Texas

Hedges are very popular here in Texas and there are several different types of bushes and trees that can be used to create a beautiful hedge. Hedges are useful for several reasons:

• They help reduce noise from roads or loud neighbors
• They block the view of two story homes & high-rise buildings
• They help reduce dust and litter from blowing into your yard
• The larger ones can offer several feet of thick shade
• They block harsh weather and can be used as a windbreaker

Below are five types of trees and shrubs that make great options when you are wanting to set up a hedge in your yard. These plants have also been chosen by their durability with winter planting. Keep reading and see which hedge/hedges are best for your designs!

Carolina Cherry

The Carolina Cherry has become a popular attractive tree for many homeowners in our desert region. The Carolina Cherry has a natural upright cone-like shape and its malleability to being trimmed makes it a great plant for hedges, short or tall. This tree can be pruned into other shapes as well and can handle topiary pruning. It is drought and heat tolerant, and requires minimal watering once established.

Its foliage is dark green, and it blooms small, creamy white flowers in the spring. The dense foliage and tall growth potential makes it perfect to block out everything from harsh weather and neighbors that are just too close. They can be easily sheared into a tall screen or sound barrier which make them a near-perfect option for many homes.

Oleander

A hedge of Oleanders will surely create an exciting view for you and your neighbors. They grow great in Houston and can grow anywhere from as short as 3 feet to as tall as 20 feet, depending on which variety you plant and what type of hedge you want for your yard. Oleanders are extremely tough and can recover from almost anything the elements throw at them. These shrubs love the hot summer months, which makes them an ideal flowering option for your Texas landscape.

The Oleander shrub displays a long-lasting bloom that comes in various colors. The blooms are lively and can extend into the cooler winter months. Preferably planted in groups or rows, the Oleander is a great tree for homeowners who are seeking privacy hedges, area screens, and property borders because of the trees ability to grow and maintain a thick coat of dark green leaves throughout the year.

Wax Leaf Privet

Named after the waxy look of its leaf, this privet has a white fragrant bloom and can be a very versatile plant for your yard, especially in hedge-form. This dense and rounded evergreen is named after its thick and waxy leaves that are smooth to the touch. The Wax Leaf Privet has many landscape applications such as being used as a small to medium hedge or tall screen.

This plant does great in Texas due to how much sun it needs to fully succeed and how tolerable it is with different types of soil conditions. This privet is easy to maintain once established, only needing low to moderate watering and only needing pruning at the discretion of the homeowner, depending on your desired size and shape design. This fast-growing evergreen shrub produces unique green foliage, blooms with white flowers and berries and is sure to stand out in your landscape.

Wax Myrtle

These evergreens are excellent privacy screens. They feature glossy, olive-green foliage with a fragrance like Bayberry candles. They grow fast in poor soil, so they are an excellent plant for the Houston area.

They get bonus points for being resistant to deer and have excellent heat tolerance. Homeowners love how easy they are to care for – they can almost take care of themselves.

Wax Myrtles are fast-growing so you will not be waiting too long to enjoy the beauty, privacy and shade coverage the Wax Myrtles provide in hedge form.

Nellie Stevens Holly

Another great tree that can be trained as a hedge and creates a near perfect privacy fence with a little different look than a typical hedge is the Nellie Stevens Holly tree. This tree is considered one of the more attractive hollies and it’s easy to see why! This evergreen tree grows fast with dark green foliage and grows upright into a pyramid-like shape. This is a perfect front yard hedge!

New color shows up twice a year in the form of small white flowers in the spring and ruby red berries in the winter time, which creates a nice contrast against the foliage. Not only is this a great tree due to how fast it grows, but for how easy it is to manage and maintain year-round. This holly just needs partial to full sun, little water, and will benefit from fertilization in early spring. Other than that, they can be left alone and still look amazing.

Moon Valley Nurseries - FREE PLANTING

Not only do we have the best trees on Earth, we can deliver them to your home and plant them for you too. We offer every service that you might need when designing a new yard or redesigning an existing landscape, whether its 2 trees or 200, Moon Valley Nurseries has you covered! Make sure to ask us about free planting when you stop by your nearest location.