I am about to be completely surrounded by an industrial solar field in adjacent property 40 ft from my front and back doors I need to screen this devastating view of black glass and metal, where soybeans and corn grew beautifully for 33 years. Help!
What trees will screen quickly and what is the average cost Where is the most reasonable place to find them Can we plant them ourselves

The fastest screen I can think of would be clumping bamboo. Some varieties are hardy to zone 5. It should be pretty easy to plant yourself, but I don't know where you would find it in your area.

How tall does this wall of greenery need to be?

Shrubs would fill in and cover better than trees. They also grow faster. Height of trees or shrubs definitely needed before we can recommend something.

These solar panels and fencing can be 15 ft tall so shrubs probably won't work thanks to all

There are all sorts of shapes and sizes of Arborvitae. Green Giant is the fastest growing but also gets wide. .

Holly bushes get tall enough and wide enough also. Arborvitae would be the fastest growing one though.

leyland cypress. gave me a wind screen and privacy fast.

BoxedIn! First, feel your feelings. Grieve the loss of your beautiful pastoral view. It's normal to feel helpless, angry and depressed. What a time to deal with something like this, when other folks are beautifying their yards and taking real pleasure being outside. So sorry! Sounds devastating, frankly.

And then you make a plan, and that's what you're doing. It may take a few years, but you have some control and can adapt. Green Giant Arborvitae are the marvel we are using to screen noxious traffic on one side of our property. Hardier and more attractive than Leyland Cypress, and they really do grow 3 feet a year! Yes, they get huge but can be topped. They are beautiful and worth the investment when you have a lot at stake. In the spring if you start with the medium size ( 2.5 gal (?) at Lowes for $25 or so) it just takes a few years for them to block at eye level. Don't plant too close to one another or their roots will crowd in time. Water deeply once a week the first year and you're good to go. In the meantime, hang out here and try to take pleasure in small things. I browse daylilies. Best wishes in regaining peace of mind.

landscape sails are an option ..... they can be installed horizontal for shade ..... or vertically to block a view

in the near future, will be putting up two, maybe 3 vertically to block my neighbors incredibly bright motion activated lights .....that turn on and off all night

Around here, those leylandii are fast growing and fast to die.

Personally, I'd be thinking about making an investment that would provide future dividends. Think of this as less of a problem, and more of an opportunity.

like... If you would like to wake up to birdsong... plant native hollies. I have holly trees that are 20 or 30 feet in height... always plenty of songbirds, especially when the fruit gets ripe.

Or maybe you would prefer to plant some edibles... like apples and pears... or... maybe service berries.

what about autumn colour?
maybe a selection of broadleaf deciduous trees?

You absolutely can plant any of these by yourself... Matter of fact... a walk down the street when the trees are dropping seed can net all the free seeds that you care to pick up!

Our Landscape Association went whole hog on Leylandii Cypress when our neighborhood was first built in 2010 or so. Now most have been replaced with other trees. They grew great for about 5 years and then started dying.

As stone said, the trees don't all need to be the same. I too would take the opportunity to plant a variety. However, since you want screening, evergreens would be preferable.

porkpal said:As stone said, the trees don't all need to be the same. I too would take the opportunity to plant a variety.

since you want screening, evergreens would be preferable.

In your opinion...

Living in Wisconsin... Winter might be spent indoors more than down south... Might not be as important to block the view... And... A double or triple row of deciduous trees and or shrubs will certainly be of help... nothing wrong with sprigging in a few cedar or pine / fir among the other trees as seen in the forest.

Did the original poster mention how much space is available for the screen?

40 feet from front and back doors.

To me.. Not enough room for double or triple trees / shrubs

sallyg said:40 feet from front and back doors.

To me.. Not enough room for double or triple trees / shrubs

Yer right.... I didn't read how small the space is... And still....

I'd personally want a yard that had no turf... at my house, 40 ft means trees inside of the outer perimeter.... ie; they wouldn't be in rows... I don't know how important sunlight reaching the ground is to OP, whether vegetables are being grown...
Here in the south shade is very important... shading the house saves on cooling...

so... I have mature Oaks, and understory trees inside that 40 ft... working on understory shrubs and things at my house...

Converting a tiny 40 ft wide space that's in turf is going to be slow... but worth planning for the future... by planting trees that can attain impressive size as well as the understory plantings... like dogwood and redbud... and other blooming and possibly fruiting woody plants.

There is going to be a potential feeling of claustrophobia... going from wide open to having a wall... Hmmm.

With only 40' it would mean a single row of various somethings or a forested property.

The actual space for the plantings is very narrow. 2-3 ft in places There is a wooden fence (ours) that runs the length of the driveway then 3 ft then the driveway Thats the space we need to fill . I agree I'm also afraid if a "wall" We are used to seeing wide open beautiful Wisconsin farm fields
We did have a few poplars there for a number of years but they don't last long and we've removed them. But they go to 'sticks' for many months but that gives you an idea of the need for columnar trees/plantings