Need recommendations for privacy shrub!

[fisheye]

One of our favorite shrubs is the Japanese Andromeda. We have four that are over eight feet tall. They grow thick and provide a great privacy screen. They also are one of the first to bloom in the spring and have held up under heavy winter snows. Their new growth also makes them an attractive shrub. One other bonus is that they are totally deer proof.

The Holly is also very deer proof - but deer will nip at some of the new growth.

[kinkytoes]

Originally Posted by evilnewbie

Looking for a hardy shrub that doesn't harbor insects/pest, resistant to wildlife, grows at least 10' tall but no more than 6' wide (cause it would hit the exterior of the house that is 10' from planting), thrive on dry soil, and absolutely no maintenance (clipping, etc)...

I am thinking of golden forsythias and then skyrocket junipers and then back to golden forsythias... the forsythias will be away from the house and as you get closer to the house it goes to skyrocket junipers and then as you move away from the house again, it goes back to golden forsythias... what do you think? Any other recommnendations? Its about 300' worth of privacy shrub...

I say go for it. My privacy plantings include forsythia and skyrocket.A few notes which may be helpful:
1. Forsythias are sprawly, but they're salt-tolerant and good to front the road. Pretty in Spring. Decent coverage, and if they're far from the house, their bad behavior can be a plus. One of my neighbors has a privacy planting of forsythias (overgrown with sweet autumn clematis. The forsythia is so thick, I can't see into their yard (darnit ) in winter.

2. Skyrocket juniper - Soo pretty. But they're vulnerable to a couple of fungal diseases. I would recommend mixing it up.
*Kudos for avoiding leyland cypress.

What's in my privacy plantings on my property which the OP may choose as well:
1. Satyr Hill Holly - The original Satyr HIll nursery is right in MD! I was pretty cool to see all the plants. These appear to enjoy a bit more afternoon shade.
2. Nellie Stevens Holly - Not quite as big as Satyr Hill at maturity, but also salt-tolerant (I believe all hollies are) and pretty...non-native + supposedly fast growers.
3. Roses - There are so many cool plants on my property...Thansk to the previous owners. Anyway, There are a lot of roses which turned out to be Dr. Huey's. Cool! Roses are also salt-tolerant, so I put a couple in my privacy plantings. I also put a rosa virginiana there. Roses (not only rugosas) are fairly salt-tolerant, grow relatively quickly and can be a good addition to a hedge.
4. Rose of Sharon - I put a couple of the ones I pulled up to make part of the privacy fence. As a switch-up for forsythia, these can be a pretty decidous layer in front of the evergreens. The ones I have are badly-behaved like forsythia, but by seeds. As part of a road-facing privacy planting, IMO these traits are a good thing. Pretty flowers and also salt-tolerant.
5. Junipers - I looked for disease-resistant ones and I picked hetzi upright juniper and spartan. Hopefully my skyrockets are going to be OK, but it is nice to have a mixture.

Other than selecting the plants, you'll probably need to buy several hoses to water the trees. You'll need to water weekly (if there is no abundant, soaking rain) for the 1st year, deeply. I bought several hoses, since it was way easier than schlepping buckets of water. You'll need to spend a couple of hours weekly watering all the trees and shrubs to ensure you don't waste the money. There's info. on the internet about how to water a tree, basically you'll need to let water run for several minutes to get the "deep" watering done. It is a pain, but necessary to get the plantings properly established.

[nola2nooga2harlot]

Nelly Stevens Holly,
Chinese holly, you can see plantings at the parking garage @ Church Street and MLK intersection,uptown.
THORNY and you can't get thru it.
Glossy Abelia Grows HUGE! just get the right variety, not dwarf.
Japanese Cleyera, Holly Leaf osmanthus, Viburnums, Thorny Elaeagnus,
IMHO