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I love the fact that I have been able to create a garden in the small urban space I have. Besides a large tree right next to our balcony, there isn’t much privacy between us and our neighbors in our apartment complex. I hope you enjoy this collaborative post on how to grow some privacy in your urban space.
Living in an urban space is one of the most exciting, heart-pounding and euphoria filled existences anyone can ever hope to have. The only problem is, well, unless you’re related to royalty or made it as a YouTube star, you’re stuck with a small outdoor space. But it isn’t the size that’s the issue – as you know, we adore having a small slice of the great outdoors. The problem is privacy. It’s having neighbors able to look into your garden and being unable to block that ugly view.
Luckily for you, we’ve been on the hunt for a solution to all this and, yup, we were successful. So, without further ado, here are our top tips and tricks on how to fix your privacy problems.
The Evergreen Screen
One of the hardest things to achieve when trying to make a space more private is doing so without making it feel smaller or claustrophobic. That’s where the evergreen screen flies in wearing a cape – if you know which shrubs work best of course. Our advice: choose Indian Laurel Columns, which are fast growing evergreen trees that don’t take up too much space, meaning they are perfect for the edge of your boundary that feels most vulnerable. Tall pleached (intertwined) shrubs that grow dense over time; that’s what you want.
Raise The Roof
A lot of the time, you know you can’t protect your entire outdoor space from prying eyes. It’s part and parcel of living the city life. If you could have a choice, though, most people would pick to make their seated area a little less open; make it that one part of your garden that isn’t overlooked by neighbors. To do this, the best thing you can do is build a solid structure in a corner of your garden – either with a solid roof or an open roof with plenty of climbers – and then put your seating-slash-dining area beneath this constructed canopy. There is no better way to enjoy those late summer evenings and nights without feeling like you’re on show the whole time.
No Of-Fence Meant
Chances are, your garden already has some form of fencing around the boundary. Most urban gardens do. The problem is, well, they tend to be unsightly and that’s because you and the people who lived there before you never gave them any TLC. It’s time to change this. Paint them, restore any parts that are rotten and then smother them in climbers. Not only will this make your garden feel like a nicer place to be, it will also make your garden that little bit more secluded, but subtly so, while the climbers will continue to grow and thicken, meaning your place will become even more private by the day.
Plant A Pergola
If you don’t fancy having a solid structure to hide under, don’t like the bulk or simply don’t have the space to create something strong enough, then another great option is to plant your own pergola. That’s right. Plant one. All you need is some umbrella style trees and some bamboo lengths and, voila, you’ll have them trained and positioned in no time. All you need to do now is put a table and chairs beneath them.
What do you grow and/or build to create privacy in your urban space? Let me know in the comments section below!
Happy gardening!
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Nina says
Hello again – I love this post! We aren’t in an urban area but on the outer edge of a small town in a rural area. But we have a really big deck and I’ve been trying to figure out how to create a shaded / private corner because the rest of the deck gets a lot of sun. Perfect for growing strawberries and tomatoes, but not so much for sitting out there on a sunny day. I’m definitely going to try some of your ideas, because they will work perfectly for my small town / almost out in the country setting. Thanks for sharing, Nina @ Vintage Mama’s Cottage
Ann says
Hello again to you too! Awesome! I’m so glad that these ideas can work in other, non-urban places. I love this time of year, because our balcony gets full sun. Growing plants is tricky during the fall and winter when the days are shorter, since the balcony is half shaded most of the time then. There are a lot of plants that grow well in shade. I have some primroses that are re-blooming right now near our sliding glass door. Check out How to Pick the Right Shade Plants if you want to add flowers to your shade area. Thanks again for stopping by!