How to Block Neighbors With Trees

Walk the area that separates your home from the neighbor's and where you want to plant your trees. Purchase a lawn-marking spray paint from a hardware store. Spray an outline of the planting area, making sure you are well within your lawn's boundaries as the trees spread on all sides and you want to prevent them from intruding onto your neighbor's property. Measure the length and depth of the planting plot.

Determine how much of your yard you want the trees to occupy. Avoid trees that take over a property because they are extremely wide, like the English laurel, for instance, that can measure up to 20 feet wide. Buy trees that do not fruit as fruit attracts birds and insects, adding to the mess the dropped leaves leave behind on your lawn.

Know the amount of sun your trees will receive daily as some need full sun, like the fast-growing Leyland cypress. Avoid a forest tree that is shade tolerant like the Western Red Cedar as its height reaches 200 feet and the width can reach up to 50 feet.

Visit several local tree farms to view the trees being sold, their characteristics and the quality of the trees being sold. Ask what U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zone your property is in. Request fast-growing trees, like bamboo, for immediate fencing, and medium to slow growing trees if you can wait for them to reach a mature height and want to spend less money per tree.

Know the widths different trees achieve. Decide if you want a maintenance free tree or one that needs pruning. Choose a Thuja "Green Giant" for a disease-free, insect-tolerant tree that can grow up to 5 feet a year and has a spread of approximately 5 feet.

Order the quantity of trees you need and ask that the nursery plant them for you. Plant the trees yourself only if you know how to prepare the soil properly and can adequately handle the quantity and size of trees in one planting.