Noel:

we planted some Ausse trees a few years ago as a wind barrier on our west and north boundry. (You might look them up on the internet, that is where we found out about them.)These trees are incredible, they are some mutant science lab strain of willow tree that grows ten feet per year. The kicker is that they need very little water to grow. They are extremely drought resistant, in Montana, that is important. Today they are probably 18 feet tall, and they are only a couple years old. They grow to about 25-35 feet when full mature, but I don't know how effective they would be for privacy in the winter, since they do shed their leaves.

That reminds me, I need to start thinking about my garden, I hope my Hollyhocks come back thick this year.

Good luck,

Tony.