Wooden Fence - Vertical Gardening

We have this awesome scalloped wood fence that surrounds our property. When I decided to increase my gardening area this year I knew immediately that I wanted to try and utilize this wood fence. My requirements were that I wanted something with a low footprint- I didn’t want to have a huge headache every time I went and mowed. I didn’t want to mar the wood in any way- if this didn’t work I didn’t want to have weakened a fairly new fence for no reason. I wanted it to be cheap- ‘cause lets face it, no one wants to spend a ton on a cucumber! And lastly, it needed to be something that could be done quickly, and without the need for heavy tools, heavy lifting, or hired out help.

I don’t want much, do I?

I first prepared the area in front of the fence. I measured out the width of space that wanted as well as the length. I dug up the earth, weeded it well, and amended it heavily. For good measure I threw down some garden cloth in what will be the area behind my vertical garden space. I didn’t spend a lot of time on this part, I just wanted to discourage the weeds and grass from coming from my neighbors house a little bit. Once I had the ground prepared I moved on to figuring out how to make my vertical dream a reality without breaking the bank.




After mulling my options I think I came up with an idea that meets my criteria.  Here’s what you’ll need:

1-60 ft. roll of four inch chicken wire (you could probably buy less if you don’t plan this much vertical length)
2- packages of 12” zip ties
wire cutters

That’s it!

First, measure out the area that you want your vertical fence to run. I decided for the sake of ease that I would just use the panels as my measuring unit. My garden runs five fence lengths long. Each panels length varies but each one is around eight feet- give or take a couple of inches.





Next, unroll the roll of chicken wire enough that you can begin to manipulate the placement of it. I decided to use the fence posts as my support beams for this and just stood the chicken wire up to the height that I wanted. I looped a zip tie through the front of the chicken wire, around the fence post, and then back through the chicken wire on the opposite side. I made sure that I had at least two “holes” in the wire separating the entrance of the tie and the exit- I didn’t want the whole weight of the wire suspended on just one hole. Attach the zip tie tightly enough that it holds the wire in place but not so tightly as to lock it down completely.

Repeat this process at the bottom.




Unroll the wire until you get to the next main fence post. This is generally a very easy process- the only thing I had to be careful of was that I didn’t stretch out the shape too badly as I was unrolling it. When you get to the next post, simply repeat the earlier process with the chicken wire.
Continue unrolling and attaching until you’ve reached your desired length. Attach your remaining zip ties and then cut the chicken wire from the roll and bend the remaining wires towards your fence. You don’t want to walk by and have them grab you!

When you’ve finished this process you can go back and tighten each tie as well as add ties to the center of each main post. I started to add the center ties but found it easier to manipulate the roll as I went with the middle left untied.

And that’s it!




I went ahead and planted two panels of climbing peas when I finished this project. I’ll go back and plant things in front of the peas in another week or two. All in all I’m thrilled with how this project turned out and I’m interested to see if this fence will hold up to my cucumbers, beans, and melons.

My total cost for this project was less than $30.

I still plan to go back and smooth everything out and create a harder edge on the front. My plan is to use this for all of my vertical gardening needs this year. I’ll edge the front of the panels with flowers and probably some varied salad type veggies. Maybe carrots, maybe lettuce. Depends on our weather and how long the temperatures hold out.

Everything being equal, I’m very happy with how it turned out.

The Garden (such as it is)

In my dreams I have a beautiful plot of perfectly flat land. There is an orchard towards the back and a place for chickens to hunt and peck in a moveable coup. I have a perfectly designed potager where flowers and kitchen vegetables and herbs live in perfect harmony. In this fantasy world I am a Master Gardener and I never have doubts or hesitations when it comes to dealing with any decision that has to be made.

My reality is somewhat different!

In truth I have about a third of an acre that is situated on the side of a fairly steep hill. I have a large cedar tree on one side of the rectangular backyard and a large hackberry tree on the other. On the opposite point in the back from the cedar sits a very large birch tree that is fighting a much smaller pink dogwood. Each of these two sit on a raised area just off my back patio- an area that that is sloped down to the yard and allows me to plant flowers. The whole thing is has a natural rock border and is surrounded by a wooden scalloped fence.

My dirt is mostly clay and rocks so raised bed gardening became my best option. I have three four by seven beds, one two by four, one three by three, and an area that runs along two different fences that totals about seven feet of eighteen inch strip of vertical growing area. Additionally there is a strip along the north side of my house that holds about a half dozen raspberry plants. Last year was the first year that I was able to get anything worth mentioning out of that bed. My raspberry philosophy thus far as been to ignore them. Something tells me thought that greater yields may be found with a little more attention (ahem: ANY attention!).

 

At any given point any one of these areas may be in shade though all of them usually get at least six hours of mostly full sun each summer day.

I have recently been gifted a greenhouse that is about 16 square feet. I’ve only just begun to figure out what to do with it. Let alone where it’s permanent resting place will be.

I have a shelving area in my garage where I have designed a grow light area using cheap shop lights from Lowes. I currently have enough grow light area for four flats of 72 cells at a time and last year was able to successfully grow all of my vegetables in this space. This year I have added one heat mat (I need more) and flower seeds to the mix.

It may sound like a lot but there is rarely a point in my gardening season where I am not trying to figure out how to juggle the space, heat, and light requirements of the seedlings that I’ve started.

Gardening for me is more than just a way to soak up sunlight, it’s a daily reminder of my place in the world. It cautions me to have patience, to bide my time until the moment is right. It makes me slow down and truly appreciate that good things take time and work and that it’s alright to not have instant gratification. It has taught me that what I can grow will always taste better than anything that the mainstream grocery stores have to offer. It gives me a purpose outside of my daily responsibilities and it reminds me not to take myself too seriously. It is therapy and it is the every essence of what it means to be alive.

Now if you’ll excuse me, my seeds are calling me.