Sure adding a garden fence can give a nice look to any garden but will it keep animals out? Everyone knows how destructive deer, rabbits, and other animals can be and sure an idea may sound good but will it work or not?
If done correctly the answer is yes only if you take the time to do everything properly. No one is going to construct an eight-foot-tall privacy fence around any garden and you may not want to use an electric fence.
With that, I looking for the best possible solutions with a reasonable cost and something easy and quick to assemble. Sometimes the answer is found in a few different solutions and this is one of those situations. If you want to use a fence to keep out small animals such as rabbits, possums, or raccoons then it will work.
Deer have to be treated differently because of how high they can jump, therefore making it impossible for them to jump over the fence may have to be done.
HOW TALL SHOULD A GARDEN FENCE BE?
The height of the fence will come down to what you are trying to keep out but you are looking at a range of 3 to 8 feet.
| ANIMAL | FENCE HEIGHT |
|---|---|
| Cats | 6 Feet |
| Dogs | 5 Feet |
| Deer | 6 – 8 Feet |
| Rabbits | 3 Feet |
| Squirrels | 6 Feet |
With that in mind, a 3 to 4-foot tall fence will do to keep out rabbits, possums, raccoons, or most other animals from roaming in. Because deer are capable of jumping over things that are eight feet tall, a fence alone will not work and I have seen them easily hop over a chain link fence like it was nothing for them.
PROTECTING THE BOTTOM OF THE FENCE
If an animal can’t find a way into a garden then it will dig its way in and now a repair needs to be done and hopefully, not too much damage was done. To stop this you can dig a 4 to 6-inch wide and 1-foot deep trench around the garden and pour concrete.
Another option is instead of concrete use gravel or pour a small mound of rocks along the fence line allowing it to cover both sides of the fence. This will act as a deterrent, depending on the type of animal or animals you are dealing with and your budget.
CHOOSING THE RIGHT GATE
Whether you build the gate or purchase one, make sure that there are no gaps that will allow any wildlife in. This is a common area where most gardeners move too quickly and later regret it.
WHAT TYPE OF FENCING SHOULD I USE
The type of fencing used doesn’t matter as long as it is made from thick gauge metal so that wildlife can’t chew through it. Chainlink fencing is your best option because it will last for a long time but you can also use metal light-duty fence posts for the post and support and pig fencing. Another option is to use wood for the posts and supports which gives the project a different look.
TAKE A DIFFERENT APPROACH WHEN IT COMES TO DEER
Sometimes there has to be a happy medium, you may not get all you want but your main goal is met and you may be surprised with what you have. After my own experience with some persistent deer, I have come up with a way to deal with them and other animals out of my garden by just using what mother nature has to offer and a garden fence to keep wildlife at bay.
Botanical gardening is more about the look than the functionality of a garden, whereas food gardening is the total opposite. It just doesn’t make sense to put up a privacy fence around your entire garden to keep them from eating it.
Instead, use sturdy materials that will last, and if you want you can use the fencing as a trellis and grow vining plants on it such as ivy or morning glory. Then on the outside of the fencing, you can plant shrubs and/or perennial plants that deter them or use shrubs that have spikes on them such as holly bushes.
Essentially, with a food garden what will help is using shrubs that are about three shrubs deep or more and about four feet high with some perennials that deer and rabbits don’t like. The reason for this is that they can jump up to 25 feet forward and you want to make a barrier that looks impossible to cross.
On the inside of the fence, using a border of perennials along the fence is a good choice of time. All of this is to try to make getting into the garden more of a hassle than it is worth. The distance of the shrubs from the fence will make them think twice about making the jump. Along with the unpleasant smells coming from the perennials, that should create enough of a barrier that is pleasant to look at but most importantly one that works.