Give your home some privacy with these plants

With the rise in houses with smaller lawns being built closer together in housing societies these days, privacy can be a bit of a problem. You don’t want your neighbours and any passers-by to be able to see into your house at all times. In such cases, you need to make some kind of privacy screen so that you feel comfortable in your own home. However, most housing societies have strict regulations on what type of structures can be built on home exteriors and do not allow privacy screens to be constructed. The best way around this dilemma is to go for natural privacy screens by utilising tall hedges, trees, and other such plants to protect the sanctity of your home. These are some of the options you have available in Pakistan with their common Urdu names in brackets and scientific names in italics so that you can locate them in your local nurseries easily.

1. Common Bamboo (Baans)

             Bambusa arundincenia

This is one of the plants you will easily be able to locate in Pakistan and also grows at a very fast pace. It shoots up to a tall height early in its age and can be easily planted around your outside area or even in large planters on your terrace to give coverage in an aesthetic way.

2. Monkey Puzzle tree (Araucaria)

             Araucaria Aracauna

This is an evergreen which survives quite well in all types of weather. Growing up to tall heights with wide, thick fronds, a pair of araucarias grown together can serve quite well as privacy screens in your house’s outside area.

3. Toyon (Sadda Bahar)

              Heteromeles Arbutifolia

The Sadda Bahar’s beautiful glossy leaves and red shades are an added bonus to the thick foliage it can provide to a home. Though not native to Pakistan, it thrives quite well here and can greatly add to the beauty and privacy of your home.

4. Leyland Cypress (Saroo)

              Cupressus x leylandii

The Leyland Cypress is especially efficient in providing privacy to homes as its leaves grow together in a dense way and the tree itself grows tall quite fast. The shade and privacy it provides has made it a popular privacy plant throughout the world.

5. Date Palm

              Phoenix Dactylifera

If your boundary walls are low and you want to screen your home in some way, the Date Palm is the perfect plant for you. It’s leaves fan out impressively and the tree also adds curb appeal to your home due to its popularity in local horticulture.

6. Viburnum (Guch/Kullam/Amoch)

            Viburnum   

Viburnums are versatile shrubs that spread out densely both upwards and outwards. This lets them give your home a privacy screen when planted around it as a hedge. An added benefit of this plant is the sweet-smelling flowers it grows.  

7. Orange jessamine (Marwa Kamni)

              Murraya Paniculata

Orange Jessamine is one of those plants which serves well for both aesthetic and privacy purposes. Its shiny, dark green leaves, with thick, gnarled branches provide a lot of coverage to your home when planted as a hedge. The white flowers which bloom on it are a huge aesthetic bonus to the privacy it provides.

8. Fig Trees (Anjeer)

           Ficus

There is a huge variety of Ficus plants available in the market that differ significantly from each other. Some of them grow upwards, while others grow more outwards. Most of them, however, have thick foliage that are great for privacy. Depending on your needs, you can choose any of these varieties to give your home some much-needed coverage.

9. Indian Mast Tree (Ulta Ashok)

         Polyalthia longifolia

The Ulta Ashok is a multipurpose tree that blocks both unwanted eyes and noise pollution from disturbing your peace of mind. Growing to over 30 feet and with thick, evergreen foliage, this is a great plant that gives your home curb appeal and privacy.

10. Skyflower/Golden Dewdrop

         Duranta repens

Though not native to Pakistan, the Golden Dewdrop is often used as a hedge plant here. As it is a flowering shrub, it adds beauty to your home as well as privacy. However, do not plant this outside your home or if you have young children or pets as this plant’s leaves and berries have been known to make children and animals sick. Birds do not suffer from the same issue and eat its berries safely. It provides privacy and it blooms for a large part of the year, with its flowers attracting butterflies. It is an excellent addition to your home for ornamental and privacy purposes.

You can use this list of plants to add both privacy and curb appeal to your home. Most of them can be found easily at local nurseries like the ones in Model Town and Kalma Chowk in Lahore. Gardening experts recommend that you hire a reputable gardener to maintain these plants and keep them looking their best. To get advice and figure out which privacy plants are best for you, head over to our Forum.