Does my garden fence need a roof?

[SfromKY]

Hi all gardeners Last year, my veggies got ravaged by something, rabbits most probably. We also have groundhogs and squirrels around. So, this year, I am putting 1"-hole, 6'-tall poultry netting around the garden, which is 10' by 10' in size. But my question is do I need to put a roof there? I don't think rabbits can climb the 6' fence, can they? I know squirrels can, but will they?

 

[Chuck]

Hi all gardeners Last year, my veggies got ravaged by something, rabbits most probably. We also have groundhogs and squirrels around. So, this year, I am putting 1"-hole, 6'-tall poultry netting around the garden, which is 10' by 10' in size. But my question is do I need to put a roof there? I don't think rabbits can climb the 6' fence, can they? I know squirrels can, but will they?

I have found when combating critters there are two things that should be done. One is to bury the fence wire about 6 inches deep as many 4 legged vegetable lovers will dig under a fence. The second thing is to keep the fencing material loose. If it is a little floppy it seems to make climbing less of a problem. I would try without a fence top first and if the squirrels or possums or whoever persist in climbing then I would resort to a wire top.................or a .22. Rats and mice are also a big problem but they are dealt with in a different way.

 

[lliefveld]

Hi all gardeners Last year, my veggies got ravaged by something, rabbits most probably. We also have groundhogs and squirrels around. So, this year, I am putting 1"-hole, 6'-tall poultry netting around the garden, which is 10' by 10' in size. But my question is do I need to put a roof there? I don't think rabbits can climb the 6' fence, can they? I know squirrels can, but will they?

They probably won't climb it, but they will dig under it! I've had some success with having about a foot of the netting lying outward on the ground. If they try to dig, it keeps going down as they dig the hole. Not foolproof though. The other thing that seemed to work (actually quite well) was to bury the dog poop along the fence line.

 

[Marck]

These methods aren't always 100% solutions, but anything you do to make access more difficult will reduce the number of garden visits, or make them less a efficient and attractive option to the animal in question. Squirrels will eat from vegetable gardens. First try it without a roof, but if needed, a 10 -foot square roof is a manageable addition. Of course, the roofwill also help if bird become a problem.

I would bury the fence deeper than one inch. Did you mean one foot? There is plastic-coated chicken-wire that will reduce the rate of rust and decay.

 

[SfromKY]

These methods aren't always 100% solutions, but anything you do to make access more difficult will reduce the number of garden visits, or make them less a efficient and attractive option to the animal in question. Squirrels will eat from vegetable gardens. First try it without a roof, but if needed, a 10 -foot square roof is a manageable addition. Of course, the roofwill also help if bird become a problem.

I would bury the fence deeper than one inch. Did you mean one foot? There is plastic-coated chicken-wire that will reduce the rate of rust and decay.

Thank you for the advice. Yes, I was talking about 1-inch mesh of the netting. But I will burry the net at least 6 inches in the ground

 

[lifegardener]

The other thing to consider are bottom dwellers - moles - that come from below your garden.
1/4" gage steel mesh works well in keeping them out.

 

[lifegardener]

They probably won't climb it, but they will dig under it! I've had some success with having about a foot of the netting lying outward on the ground. If they try to dig, it keeps going down as they dig the hole. Not foolproof though. The other thing that seemed to work (actually quite well) was to bury the dog poop along the fence line.

Like the clever idea of burying dog poop along the fence line - both a fertilizer and repellant.

 

[hawil]

What did you end up doing? I have a similar issue. We also want to replace a roof on our barn, so I think it would be wise to solve these two issues altogether.