Urban living is full of convenience but also full of noise. Traffic, planes, people, the general hubbub of city life rumbles on 24 hours a day and it can be hard to get away from it - even in the sanctuary of your own backyard or balcony. Many road builders now construct so-called baffles along busy highways to block the worst of the traffic noise, but the background hum is ever present.
Luckily, there are many ways you can help to reduce it further by using plants to create a natural sound barrier. Clever planting not only helps to mask noises from beyond your backyard, it creates an attractive feature in its own right. Generations of gardeners have used trees, shrubs and plants to demarcate their property lines and create privacy, but they can also be used to reduce the impact of unwanted external sounds.
