fast growing plants / trees

Firstly, be careful of planting ultimately big shrubs without carefully positioning them. Here are some:- evergreens; photinia x fraseri 'Red Robin', elaeagnus eggingei, and its cultivars, prunus laurocerasus (cherry laurel), cotoneaster (larger leafed cutlivars), mahonia x media cultivars, lonicera nitida 'Baggesen's Gold', pittosprum tenuifolium (once established). Deciduous shrubs; Forsythia, sambucus nigra cultivars, sambucus racemosa 'Sutherland Gold', cornus alba hybrids (esp. the cultivar 'Elegantissima'), lavatera olbia cvs., buddleja davidii cutivars, viburnum tinus, viburnum x burkwoodii. However, what about putting in a small tree or two (don't know how big the area is), to take your eye away from the boundaries and the spaces, and underplanting the tree(s) with lower growing shrubs and perennials? Worthy

Good answer Worthy. And if you decide to go for a small tree, Shazzie, Amelanchier lanarkii is one of the prettiest. Just be sure to give it loads of water in its first year. Lots of luck with the planting . . . quite exciting to have a "blank canvas"!

When I first moved I put up some cheap trellis in L shape fixed it temporary with post supports you put in the ground and are not cemented. I planted annual climbers and different coloured runner beans (flowers) this gave me seclusion in a small part for the summer. Then planting as has been suggested. I also like the Viburnum x bodnantense 'Dawn and Fragrans both can be prunned to make them what you want. Lovely perfumed flowers in the winter, downside dull in summer but have clematis growing up them. The Viburnum Tinus as mention above Gwenllian is a good variety.

The Viburnum Tinus if planted look out for the Viburnum Larve/beetle , when the larve eats the leaf there can make a bad smell/stink

While plants which grow fast are a temptation, I would heed the warnings given above. There is nothing worse than having to get rid of shrubs or trees which have outgrown their space in a few years. Try and get hold of a tree and shrub book by Dr Hessayon or look at one in your local garden centre. The book is a good read as well as being honest about the pros and cons of each shrub or tree. It gives planting distances and advice about each plant. There are also pictures of each plant.