Unfortunately (to say the least), the neighbor just razed the 100+ year-old pines and camellias on two adjacent lots (tried to buy them, to no avail) in order to put up houses. One is a two-story affair 7-8' off our line, and while I don't want to come across as too anti-social, I'd love to completely blot this new house from view. Does anyone have suggestions on fast-growing fruit-producing plants that are good for screening and don't take up a lot of horizontal space? The house is already partially blocked by a Chinese fir, so I really only need a screen ~12' wide, and 16-25' tall (16' would cover the windows, 25' the whole thing), and preferably 5 or fewer feet "thick". Bananas come immediately to mind (and I would be interested in suggestions on 15'+ tall dessert varieties), but they would only provide the desired screen for part of the year. Maybe a feijoa hedge? All else failing, I will probably just plop in a vigorous, upright citrus - Ponkan, perhaps, but other suggestion on that are welcome, as well.
This is in Tallahassee, FL, so nominally Zone 8b, but probably more like 9a-b, once the urban heat effect and southern exposure are taken into account.
Thanks for your suggestions.
