The Marigold Potager – A Zone 3 Prairie Garden

Last year, after we lost our two Mountain Ash privacy trees, I shared this post Top 10 Small Trees for Backyard Privacy and Beauty – Zone 3 . We picked up three of those trees (I am still looking to put in one more, by the patio.

This year, I would love to add some evergreens that stay compact, offer privacy, beauty, and shelter for the birds. Yes, I am still working on attracting birds to my backyard. They love the front, but not yet the back. This may be due to the dogs? Or the magpies that visit regularly.

Cedars, while beautiful, are not the best choice for the prairies. Looking for that same look to make a hedge or as a standalone feature tree? Here are some ideas that are hardy in a zone 3, stay compact, and look great. They add beauty to your landscape.

Also, despite it’s name, the Dwarf Alberta Spruce does not tend to thrive on the prairies. It tend to get winter kill/wind burn in winter, leading to dead bits come summertime.

1. Moonglow Juniper

This evergreen tree will get 10 to 15 feet tall and stays narrow, at just 4 to 6 feet wide. It is a relatively slow grower.

Once established, this tree will not require a lot of watering and is super hardy.

1. Juniperus scopulorum is a remarkable pyramidal shaped tree better known as the Rocky Mountain Juniper. It would make a stunning hedge.
2. This slow growing evergreen maintains a slender width while growing to a moderate height, making it an ideal selection for landscapes project that require a visual height element but do not have the width to accommodate a wider tree or shrub.
3. The foliage is a deep blue-green color with a delicate silvery tinge and maintains it’s colour throughout the seasons.
4. Its hardiness also means that it is suitable for locations that may experience drought conditions, too.

This is my top choice for the location I have in mind.

2. Skyrocket Juniper

A slow to moderate grower, this juniper will grow to 5 feet and 1 foot wide in 10 years, reaching 10 to 20 feet and 2 to 3 feet wide over the years.

Very hardy, compact juniper, good to a Zone 3.

1. Small, very narrow evergreen. Stays much shorter than other narrow junipers, making it perfect for small gardens or containers.
2. Grows in poor soil, tolerates urban pollution, and remains neat with no trimming.
3. Very hardy and grows well in windy, exposed places.
4. Striking blue foliage makes a great screen or specimen tree.
5. Grows well in any well-drained soil, including rocky or alkaline. Water deeply and regularly in the first season to establish an extensive root system. Drought tolerant once established.

3. Columnar Norway Spruce

This hardy spruce tree is good to a Zone 3, grows to 25 feet tall and 6 feet wide.

Elegant columnar tree, highly valued as an accent or perimeter planting where a strong vertical effect is needed. Dark green evergreen needles are slightly curved on closely set limbs, creating a slender, uniform form with dense branching to the ground. Withstands heavy snow loads. Tolerates heat and humidity.

1. No pruning is required.
2. Prefers full sun and well draining soil. Tolerates wind and dry sites. Is adaptable to varying soil conditions, though it prefers slightly acidic soils.
3. Make a great hedge, privacy screen, or windbreak.
4. Water deeply, regularly in the first season to establish an extensive root system. Drought tolerant once established.

4. Colorado Blue Spruce ‘Fastigiata’

Hardy to a Zone 3, this lovely blue evergreen will grow up to 10 to 20 feet tall and 6 to 8 feet wide.

The spruce ‘Fastigiata’ cultivar doesn’t grow as wide as the species tree. The conical evergreen is ideal for planting in a compact garden.

1. A wonderful twist on a classic landscape tree. This stunning columnar form of the Blue Colorado Spruce is perfect for small space gardens or filling in a narrow space in the landscape.
2. Very easy to grow in just about any well-drained soil. It displays good drought resistance and tolerates urban air pollution.
3. Makes a lovely outdoor ‘Christmas Tree’ during the holiday season, due to it’s pyramidal form.
4. The Columnar Colorado Blue Spruce is very easy to grow and low maintenance. It is adaptable to most soils however does not like constantly soggy soils, which can be problematic. Dry or consistently damp to moist but well-drained soils are preferred. At least 7 hours of direct sunlight per day is suggested. It is drought tolerant when established and you might be happy to know that deer won’t touch it.

5. Chalet Swiss Stone Pine

This Zone 3 hardy pin grows to 12 feet high and 8 feet wide. It is a slow to medium rate grower, growing 6 to 10 inches per year.

A beautiful, narrowly conical form, Pinus cembra ‘Chalet’ grows slowly into a dense, compact tree that is perfect for today’s smaller landscapes.

1. Chalet Swiss Stone Pine is a dwarf conifer, valued in the landscape or garden for its rigidly columnar form.
2. It has attractive silvery blue foliage with green undersides. The needles are highly ornamental and remain silvery blue throughout the winter.
3. Clusters of soft-to-the-touch, blue-green needles with white undersides add a fluffy elegance to this extremely hardy choice.

Those are some of my favourite evergreen choices as smaller evergreens for your yard, to provide shelter for the birds, give you year round privacy, adding a bit of something-something to your landscape.

These two weeping trees are on the smaller size, but are gorgeous and hardy.

Thee are many, many other evergreens that are considered very dwarf, that will stay under 5 feet, some as small as two feet tall and wide.

You can also find creeping junipers that range from 4 inches high to 12 inches high, and range in varying shades hues of green or blue to choose from, if you want a hardy, low growing, easy to maintain landscape.

In my case, I am looking for an upright, kind of pyramidal tree as I need the height for privacy but it has to be narrow and cannot get out of hand ; )

There you have it – A list of hardy, beautiful, small evergreen trees that fit into any city lot ~ Tanja