Everyone who comes to my house comments on the Japanese Variegated Willow by the driveway. It is light, airy and enormous. Hardy to zone 4, it is in full sun and being on the mountain slope has excellent drainage. The plant tag said it would be 8' by 5' at maturity. Well, let me tell you, it is at least 8 feet high and way more that 5 wide. It is fast growing, to the point that I whack at it (OK, heavily prune) in mid summer every year. Added bonus? The deer won't touch it.
The foliage is mottled green and white with a blush of pink on the new leaves. Bear in mind that it is deciduous so it will be bare in winter. But it does provide winter interest. It is truly spectacular and would work well as a privacy screen. In fact I have often considered taking out the ancient Forsythia hedge by the road and replacing it with a row of these. I think it would look awesome. But I also think it would take a lot of work and I'm too lazy to put in the effort.Think you might want to try one? You can't go wrong with this, but buy a good pruner at the same time. You are going to need it.
