If it turns out you can't have a high enough hedge or fence, go to the part of the garden that you most need privacy in, and look in the direction of where the view is most intrusive. Then walk along an imagined path toward the intrusive view, marking or remember spots where shrubs and trees could be placed, accounting for obstacles and features already present. Make a quick sketch of where shrubs could go. Then have a look through a gardening book or catalogue, or online at the hight and spread of shrubs and trees that are within your budget. Mark these on your sketch with hight and spread noted beside them. The nearest shrubs to your private area should be the shortest, and then ascend in hight as you get closer to the edge of your property. Lastly, go back to the area that you want to be most private with your sketch handy, and check if your plan will roughly fill in any gaps in the imagined general view. Make sure you know the widths of each shrub, as you want them to fill space without wasting any space.
It really doesn’t matter what shrubs you use as long as they increase in hight toward the back, so you can use stuff that you find online in the sales, sort out bits here and there take cutting etc. while you build up your collection. When you have chosen where to put your shrubs plan the pathways and areas for sitting to weave around them. This way you get maximum flexibility without having to worry about getting all your plants in one go, and you get to choose plants as you spot them in the sales, or even grow your own from seed. You don't have to worry about the hight of your hedge or fence because you are not planting one, you only have specimen trees and shrubs. You will find that you have to put in far fewer shrubs than you might expect in order to fill in the imagined horizon of your garden.
If you have a garden reasonably sheltered from strong winds you might put in Paulonia (Empress or Sapphire Dragon tree) and Laburnum (Golden chain tree) right at the back as they both grow very quickly, and their flowers are big and conspicuous, so the trees will draw attention to themselves rather than anything that lies beyond them.
In summery, you want shrubs of increasing hight as they receed, placed so that each fills a gap in the overall view. You then plan your paths and seating areas arround what you have space for and can get hold of cheaply. I hope this all makes sense, it is hard to describe without drawing out a plan, but I do know it works.
blairs, I think the Council might see through that plan, (apart from the fact that I'm not convinced that building a 6 ft fence on top of a 4 ft wall would be either a cheap or straightforward job) - and I have to say that, as far as I can tell from the pictures, in this situation it would be an eyesore as it wouldn't be in keeping with anything else around the area. In a case like this I would approach the Council for their advice and definitive ruling - then you've got something to rely on if there are complaints.
I think the brick wall/fence option will be way over our budget as well. It's interesting that some of you are saying a hedge may not be the answer, but rather go for well-placed bushes and shrubs. I would be interested to know where you recommend they are planted as I'm not sure how that will impact on the size of the grass area. Also the types of plants, I know a few have already been suggested.
I have done a quick mock up on CAD of my garden. Please provide comments as to positioning of the plants and general layout, thanks. The path leads down to a shed at the bottom, though I'm not sure if the path is necessary. I also think that the patio might look a bit odd, as I'm curving the flower beds yet the patio has very sharp edges. The area to the right is the block driveway, then the house and then obviously the garden
I have looked on a website and it says the soil is 'freely draining slightly acid loamy soils' with 'low carbon and low fertility'. I live in Godalming. It is also quite windy where I am as we are on top of a hill.
Your suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks for your support so far
Is it worth waiting until the summer and you start sitting in the garden and see where it is best to apply some sort of bushy / pergola construction for privacy ? You can also if you have any sunny / shady sections
You could also spend some time looking at other gardens that are open for ideas ?
I'm just finding out from the Moderator if it is OK for me to post some web addresses of companies currently having big sales on their shrubs. If it isn't I have asked him/her to tell me how to mail you privately. Hope to send you some useful stuff shortly. Dinah.
Re not posting the web addresses Blairs, Mmm, I guess I don't like making moderators cross, and I don't like forums that purport to be advisory and unbiased, but are actually just interactive advertisements. Its not that I don't like exposing people who don't actually need a product to lovely glossy pictures of amazing bargains... that would be mean, and I would be delighted to forward the same bargains to you privately, but you've probably seen them already, because they are from big selling companies, not wonderful little ones that give trade prices that only horticultural experts know about. If I did know any trade secrets like this, I'm afraid I would probably tell everyone about them, and then the whole capitalist system would crumble before our eyes...
LOL Dinah. Most nurseries and GC's have trade cards. You need to be a business to get one and the discount of course. This time of year loads of these places have good discounts for all. If you know of any then make a new topic as I think it is something we would all be interested in.
Trade cards?? I see that merchants and traders are becoming more cunning these days! You will be telling me next that they have some sort of governmental registry!! I shall return to taking fortuitous cuttings and collecting seeds from public parks and verges.
Posts
If it turns out you can't have a high enough hedge or fence, go to the part of the garden that you most need privacy in, and look in the direction of where the view is most intrusive. Then walk along an imagined path toward the intrusive view, marking or remember spots where shrubs and trees could be placed, accounting for obstacles and features already present. Make a quick sketch of where shrubs could go. Then have a look through a gardening book or catalogue, or online at the hight and spread of shrubs and trees that are within your budget. Mark these on your sketch with hight and spread noted beside them. The nearest shrubs to your private area should be the shortest, and then ascend in hight as you get closer to the edge of your property. Lastly, go back to the area that you want to be most private with your sketch handy, and check if your plan will roughly fill in any gaps in the imagined general view. Make sure you know the widths of each shrub, as you want them to fill space without wasting any space.
It really doesn’t matter what shrubs you use as long as they increase in hight toward the back, so you can use stuff that you find online in the sales, sort out bits here and there take cutting etc. while you build up your collection. When you have chosen where to put your shrubs plan the pathways and areas for sitting to weave around them. This way you get maximum flexibility without having to worry about getting all your plants in one go, and you get to choose plants as you spot them in the sales, or even grow your own from seed. You don't have to worry about the hight of your hedge or fence because you are not planting one, you only have specimen trees and shrubs. You will find that you have to put in far fewer shrubs than you might expect in order to fill in the imagined horizon of your garden.
If you have a garden reasonably sheltered from strong winds you might put in Paulonia (Empress or Sapphire Dragon tree) and Laburnum (Golden chain tree) right at the back as they both grow very quickly, and their flowers are big and conspicuous, so the trees will draw attention to themselves rather than anything that lies beyond them.
In summery, you want shrubs of increasing hight as they receed, placed so that each fills a gap in the overall view. You then plan your paths and seating areas arround what you have space for and can get hold of cheaply.
I hope this all makes sense, it is hard to describe without drawing out a plan, but I do know it works.
blairs, I think the Council might see through that plan, (apart from the fact that I'm not convinced that building a 6 ft fence on top of a 4 ft wall would be either a cheap or straightforward job) - and I have to say that, as far as I can tell from the pictures, in this situation it would be an eyesore as it wouldn't be in keeping with anything else around the area. In a case like this I would approach the Council for their advice and definitive ruling - then you've got something to rely on if there are complaints.
Thanks for all the suggestions.
I think the brick wall/fence option will be way over our budget as well. It's interesting that some of you are saying a hedge may not be the answer, but rather go for well-placed bushes and shrubs. I would be interested to know where you recommend they are planted as I'm not sure how that will impact on the size of the grass area. Also the types of plants, I know a few have already been suggested.
I have done a quick mock up on CAD of my garden. Please provide comments as to positioning of the plants and general layout, thanks. The path leads down to a shed at the bottom, though I'm not sure if the path is necessary. I also think that the patio might look a bit odd, as I'm curving the flower beds yet the patio has very sharp edges. The area to the right is the block driveway, then the house and then obviously the garden
I have looked on a website and it says the soil is 'freely draining slightly acid loamy soils' with 'low carbon and low fertility'. I live in Godalming. It is also quite windy where I am as we are on top of a hill.
Your suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks for your support so far
Sam
Is it worth waiting until the summer and you start sitting in the garden and see where it is best to apply some sort of bushy / pergola construction for privacy ? You can also if you have any sunny / shady sections
You could also spend some time looking at other gardens that are open for ideas ?
Best of luck what ever you do
I'm just finding out from the Moderator if it is OK for me to post some web addresses of companies currently having big sales on their shrubs. If it isn't I have asked him/her to tell me how to mail you privately. Hope to send you some useful stuff shortly. Dinah.
Why can't you post web addresses? Everyone else does...
Re not posting the web addresses Blairs, Mmm, I guess I don't like making moderators cross, and I don't like forums that purport to be advisory and unbiased, but are actually just interactive advertisements.
Its not that I don't like exposing people who don't actually need a product to lovely glossy pictures of amazing bargains... that would be mean, and I would be delighted to forward the same bargains to you privately, 
but you've probably seen them already, because they are from big selling companies, not wonderful little ones that give trade prices that only horticultural experts know about. 
If I did know any trade secrets like this, I'm afraid I would probably tell everyone about them, and then the whole capitalist system would crumble before our eyes...
LOL Dinah. Most nurseries and GC's have trade cards. You need to be a business to get one and the discount of course. This time of year loads of these places have good discounts for all. If you know of any then make a new topic as I think it is something we would all be interested in.
Trade cards??
I see that merchants and traders are becoming more cunning these days! You will be telling me next that they have some sort of governmental registry!! I shall return to taking fortuitous cuttings and collecting seeds from public parks and verges.