Hide Objects With Outside Shrubs and Plants

When creating your ideal outdoor living space, you imagine having gorgeous flowers or other plant life creating a beautiful surrounding of your home or commercial space, and having attractive outdoor features such as a pool, outdoor kitchen, or permanent structure creating the perfect backdrop. It sounds great, right? But what are you going to do about hiding those ugly and bulky objects outside your house? We’re talking about picking privacy plants to hide AC unit, pool filters, plumbing, electrical equipment, etc. You may have a beautiful landscape but the first thing everyone will notice is that huge outdoor air conditioner sticking out like a sore thumb. Trust us, it’s not a good look.

Don’t scrap your dream landscape just yet. There are a lot of options when it comes to hiding these robust objects and keeping your residential or commercial space looking fresh and charming.

All you need is to have a plan in place of choosing and spacing the best plant, shrub, or tree that will not only hide these objects but compliment the look of your space and overall outdoor flow. Let’s look at some of the best plant life options to get you a functional and jaw-dropping outdoor living space without spotting those unwanted yard objects.

Just Add Hedges

When you think about creating privacy and hiding outdoor objects, many look to hedges to get the job done, and we don’t blame anyone for going this route. Hedges come in a variety of shapes and sizes and are a great plant that adds an attractive appearance and the ability to hide those big yard objects. One of the most popular groups of hedges is the Sheared Privet or Arborvitae hedges. Different types of Arborvitae hedges are the Green Giant, which can grow up to 60 feet tall or the Emerald as they grow 10 to 15 and can be trimmed down if needed. The Sheared Privet is ideal because they can be cut to almost any height and provide a very clean look.

Pro Tips: For Residential – Use hedges to create a “green” fence around your pool for the extra privacy and to hide your pool plumbing such as a pump or filtration system.

For Commercial – Hedges are a great option to hide either electrical outlets, plumbing, or irrigation systems that surround your property. When hiding electrical equipment, be sure to leave about 12 feet of space in front of electrical outlets for safety.

Spruce it Up

To help hide bigger objects and especially bring attention away from high electrical lines, you can’t go wrong with a group of tall, breathtaking spruce trees. We recommend going with either a Norway or Colorado Blue Spruce as both will look great planted in a residential or commercial setting.

Norway Spruce offers tremendous coverage, can grow up to 100 feet tall, and grow fast. Not to mention they bring an elegant and charming touch to the rest of your landscape. Plus, other benefits of Norway spruce are they grow in full sun and moderate shade, maintain low branches and naturally block the wind.

Colorado Blue Spruce offers a one-of-a-kind silver and blue color and is a popular Northeast region spruce with their iconic Christmas Tree shape.

They can also hold up to strong winds and can complement a variety of beautiful flowers and shrubs.

Pro Tip: As much as a tall spruce can be great to disguise electrical equipment, it can also be quite dangerous. That’s why it’s very important to be aware of the equipment when planting – most cities have requirements for minimum safe distance, plus you don’t want your plantings to interfere with any electrical boxes on the ground for workers who may need to do repairs.

Use Foundation Plantings

One of the most common ways you can hide yard objects is with foundation plantings and one of the main reasons why is because you have A LOT of wonderful options. You can choose from a variety of amazing colors that will enhance the aesthetic of your outdoor living space. Here are some of the most popular foundation plantings you can choose to deliver exactly what you need.

Butterfly Bush offers some of the most stunning colors in purple, blue, lavender, pink, and white. It also has a fruity aroma that attracts butterflies and hummingbirds. They can grow up to 10 feet tall and grow into a fountain-like shape.

Knockout Roses are always a popular choice and for good reason, I mean who doesn’t love a bed of divine red or pink roses?

These nicely shaped shrubs grow up to 4 feet tall and are great to plant near a fence to disguise electrical equipment or a pool pump.

Catmint is a great choice because they bloom from summer into the fall. They bloom into a lovely fuzzy gray tone with tiny purple-blue flowers and grow up to 4 feet tall. Making them an ideal height to hide air conditioner with plants while offering plenty of curb appeal.

Korean Spice Viburnum is simply an eye-popping shrub with gorgeous white or pink flowers. What makes these shrubs extra special is the spice cake aroma. These also grow to about 6 feet tall and bloom in full sun to partial shade. If you’re looking to add a shrub that can hide most yard objects and add a ton of value to your landscape, the Korean Spice Viburnum is a no-brainer.

Need Expert Landscape Design Help?

To get the most out of foundation plantings, shrubs, and trees to help hide those pesky and unattractive outdoor objects, let the professionals at Neave Landscaping help you come up with the perfect plan.

We can come to your space and discuss all your planting options from shrubs, trees, perennials, grasses, hedges, and more. We know the best way to disguise your yard objects while finding the best way to compliment the architecture of your home and the rest of your outdoor space. Let us do the work so you can sit and enjoy your dream landscape all summer and year long. Call us today and we’ll be happy to visit your property and get started.

If you’re in the Hudson Valley, call us at (845) 463-0592. If you’re in Westchester County, call (914) 271-7996; from Connecticut, dial (203) 212-4800. Or, fill out our simple web form, and we’ll contact you about setting up your free consultation.