Hi Nellie and welcome to GoY. We need a bit more info from you which way does your corner face, how much sun is it going to get, what sort of soil do you have? Are you wanting somethnig that will grow on the fence or be freestanding?

Whether its in full sun, part shade or full shade is critical, so if you could give that info at least, that'd be useful.

Also how tall is tall and what do you mean by a large area?

Welcome to Goy by the way :)

Let's not frighten Nellie off with too many questions, Anchorman - I'm assuming a free standing large shrub at the moment, perhaps 8 to 10 feet high by 6 or more feet wide...

Your assumption may or may not be correct. It is perfectly reasonable to ask how big she wants this shrub to grow and I see no reason why two simple questions would frighten her off

Sorry, didn't mean to offend, Anchorman - its just that sometimes, people who aren't gardeners DO get frightened off by too many questions from us on here, makes it all seem too complicated, that's all I meant.

Escallonia! :-) Almost any variety will do what you want Nellie. And welcome from me too.

Not if its in full shade, Beattie...

Pittosporum tenuifolium cultivars, which will tolerate any shade, but grow tall enough to reach the sun, prunus lusitanica (a bit muted dark green, but smart), and I've got elaeagnus 'Limelight' which does well (sometimes too well), in sun or shade. They're all evergreen. Phil

How about a rose such as American Pillar or the one I saw at Mottisfont in June--Rose complicata-- I totally fell in love with it. It has tall arching branches and can be grown as a free-standing shrub or will scramble up trees and over fences. (So will American Pillar or many other rambling roses).