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Fence or trellis for climbing plants?

Lindsayfurze1Lindsayfurze1 Posts: 4
in Garden design
I'm buying a house and need to put 6foot fencing up to keep the dogs in the garden.

I was concerned about the garden feeling too closed in once I put fence up. So was considering using trellis panels all the way round, instead of solid fence panels. I would like climbers to grow up it

Will a trellis panel with climbers be as hardy as a solid fence with climbers?  Is there a particular style of trellis that is stronger?

Thankyou! 

Posts

  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    Fences will be stronger if you're going with wood.  We erected a fence of 6' high trellis panels between our veggie plot and the ornamental garden in our last house and it only lasted a few years before wind and rain damage meant we need to replace panels.

    On the other hand, I used the metal grid sold by builders' merchants for reinforcing concrete to fence off our veggie plot from the arable field behind and this proved an excellent means to keep our dogs in and let me grow plants like blackberries as well as pumpkins which I trained up the grid to get maximum sun on the fruits.

    In this new, to us, garden I will be using more of that grid to make a climbing support for clematis and roses for a new seating area I'm planning but, next to the house, I have created a formal rose garden using proper grown up mesh fencing to close it off and support a couple of repeat flowering rambling roses and some clematis.

    In the end it will depend on your budget and skills but the metal grid will be unobtrusive, dog and weather proof and last a life time if you give it decent supports.

    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    Can you use four foot wooden fencing with a high trellis attached? That way you get strength of the fence and a sense of openness and light. It's what I have had and it works well.
  • Lindsayfurze1Lindsayfurze1 Posts: 4
    edited March 2020
    . 
  • Lindsayfurze1Lindsayfurze1 Posts: 4
    Fire said:
    Can you use four foot wooden fencing with a high trellis attached? That way you get strength of the fence and a sense of openness and light. It's what I have had and it works well.
    Thanks Fire - I've been looking at fencing with trellis attached, however the trellis section seemed to be a very small proportion of the overall fence. 

    Did you buy the trellis topper and fence separately? Or one unit?  If you brought it separately, did the fencers charge more to install it? Thankyou
  • Lindsayfurze1Lindsayfurze1 Posts: 4
    Obelixx said:
    Fences will be stronger if you're going with wood.  We erected a fence of 6' high trellis panels between our veggie plot and the ornamental garden in our last house and it only lasted a few years before wind and rain damage meant we need to replace panels.

    On the other hand, I used the metal grid sold by builders' merchants for reinforcing concrete to fence off our veggie plot from the arable field behind and this proved an excellent means to keep our dogs in and let me grow plants like blackberries as well as pumpkins which I trained up the grid to get maximum sun on the fruits.

    In this new, to us, garden I will be using more of that grid to make a climbing support for clematis and roses for a new seating area I'm planning but, next to the house, I have created a formal rose garden using proper grown up mesh fencing to close it off and support a couple of repeat flowering rambling roses and some clematis.

    In the end it will depend on your budget and skills but the metal grid will be unobtrusive, dog and weather proof and last a life time if you give it decent supports.

    Thanks obelixx. Do you mean something like this? 

    https://www.mycoffeepot.org/wood-and-wire-mesh-fence.html

    It looks good! Never considered something like that before. Did you install it yourself? Or could a handy type man do it for you? 
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    I attached trellis over the whole fence, which also makes it easier to grow climbers up the whole thing. You just attach with a few screws - takes seconds. I have also used garden wire to attach trellis.
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    @Lindsayfurze1 - that fence and wire looks very smart and sturdy.

    For ours, we used a mix of proper fence posts and recycled climbing fence posts sunk in concrete at 2M intervals and then screwed lengths of 5m x 2m metal mesh to it.   This is it at the compost bin end of the veg plot.

    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    You can certainly get heftier trellis, or you can make it yourself with roofing battens.
    I bought heavier duty stuff when I knew I wanted clematis for the fences  here.


    They aren't difficult to make either, if you're reasonably handy with a saw and a screwdriver etc.
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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