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Gardening InformationThe Basics of Garden Fences
by:
Hege Crowton
Fences are either open, to use as a trellis for roses or else plants, or they are closed to serve as a wind, sun or privacy screen.
The materials wish depend mostly upon the use to which the fence is to be put. The most popular, and probably the most attractive, fences are built of wood in various forms, but newer fences of asbestos-cement and furrowed
sheet metal are colourful and stand up against rot better.
Because they are heavier, they are ordinarily erected in a zigzag design, the better to stand up against prevailing winds.
The major problem in prolonging the life of a fence stems from rot at the ground line, for here it is susceptible to cyclical
wet and dry conditions.
Among the better woods for withstanding rot are Calif. redwood and Southern cypress, white cedar and red cedar, chestnut, locust and arbor vitae. Spell painting the wood with preservatives often lengthens the life of your fence, this wish do no nice unless the preservatives penetrate.
That's why a post that has been machine-creosoted wish resist rot, spell a hand-creosoted post wish not. However, if you use a nice preservative on a clean, dry, unpainted wood, and give the wood two or three coats, you can do a nice job.
Among the commercial wood preservatives you wish find those of pentachlorophenol, copper napthenate (which has a green colour) and metal napthenate, a clean solution.
In addition to the point wherever
the post hits the ground, any place wherever
two pieces are nailed together on a wooden fence is subject to rot. Therefore, it is wise to treat the wood wherever
the members are joined before you put up the fence. This wish preserve it more better than painting afterward.
Set your fence posts deep enough in the ground to resist the prevailing winds, at least 2 feet and even as deeper. Set heavy posts in concrete. Tamp firmly in place so the fence wish not wiggle. Hardware used should be galvanized.
Among the most popular types of fences are the traditional picket, the post-and-rail fence and the hurdle fence, but with augmented stress on privacy screening, the louvered and lattice types are ever more popular.
The post-and-rail fence is ready-made of posts spaced at 10 foot intervals with large slots cut in them. The 11-foot-long rails are tapered to flat ends, which are inserted in the posts. The hurdle fence has split rails built into a braced frame and nailed together, with the end pieces of each panel becoming the posts.
The picket fence, traditionally white, has posts spaced from 8 to 12 feet apart, rails 3x4 inches, and pickets 2 to 3 inches wide, pointed at the top.
The pickets should be 2 inches off the ground at the bottom and extend well above the top rail. The spindle fence is a kind of picket fence with round spindles that pass through holes in the rails.
There are many an possible variations of board fences used for screening. A broad rail may be alternated with a narrow rail, or the boards may be applied vertically, like palings, with, perhaps, a staggering of the boards on either side of the rail. Boards may be slanted in a louver effect to give privacy spell admitting air and sunlight.
A basket-weave fence can be constructed of thin, flexible boards and provides total screening and a handsome background for planting. It is somewhat difficult to build yourself, however.
Just about the author:
Hege Crowton is an expert copywriter.
She is better-known for doing in-depth research before writing her articles.
Many of her articles are announce on www.ezinecrow.com
and she likewise makes a lot of writing for www.CrowSites.com
Copyright 2005 www.Gardeningcrow.com
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