Garden Fence Plans:
Build Your Own Vegetable Garden Fence
★ SaveThese free garden fence plans show you how to build your own vegetable garden fence, from a simple chicken wire fence you can put up in an afternoon to a wooden fence that lasts for years.
Building from garden fence plans yourself saves a lot of money. Most garden fences need only a few basic tools, and many can be built from recycled materials.
From My Garden
I've always loved pretty and interesting fences, and especially gates. Our farm had a white wooden picket fence, and an antique woven wire gate that led from the orchard into the barnyard.
The picket fence was destroyed in Oregon's famous Columbus Day Storm of 1962. Amazingly, the wind blew the pickets off the fence and drove them so far into the ground that they splintered and broke when we tried to pull them out! That was the end of the picket fence.
The storm also blew off part of the barn roof and carried it several hundred feet through the air, where it landed gently in the backyard of our farmhouse. We lost electricity for two weeks. I still remember the wind howling ferociously in the fir tree in front of our farmhouse, and the house shaking in the blasts.
It was replaced by a wire fence, which lacked the charm of the pickets but got the job done. We still have the nice old woven wire gate! It has been moved around several times over the decades, serving wherever it is needed most.
Charlotte
How tall should your fence be?
It depends on the animal. Our Vegetable Garden Fence page shows the height, how deep to bury, and the best wire for deer, rabbits, groundhogs, raccoons, and pets.
Which Fence for Which Animal?On This Page
Free DIY Garden Fence Plans
Click any of these garden fence plans to download it, then print it and take it outside. Our garden fence plans show the materials and the steps.
Chicken Wire Garden Fence Plan
★ SaveWooden Pallet Garden Fence Plan
★ SaveCheap DIY Garden Fences Guide
★ SaveBefore You Build a Garden Fence
- Decide what you're keeping out. Rabbits need a 2- to 3-foot fence with a buried edge; deer need about 8 feet. See which fence keeps out which animal.
- Check the rules. Many towns and homeowner associations limit fence height and how close a fence can be to the street or property line.
- Talk to your neighbor if the fence will be on or near the property line.
- Sketch and measure. Draw the garden on paper, measure each side, and mark the corners and the gate. Then count the posts and the feet of wire or boards you'll need.
- Plan a wide gate. Make it at least 3 feet wide, or 4 feet if you use a wheelbarrow or garden cart. Most garden fence plans can be adjusted for a wider gate.
How to Build a Chicken Wire or Welded Wire Garden Fence
A wire fence is the cheapest and fastest fence to build, and it's the best kind for keeping out rabbits and other small animals.
- Dig a trench about 6 inches deep and a foot wide around the garden.
- Set metal T-posts or wooden posts on the garden side of the trench: one at each corner and one every 6 to 8 feet in between.
- Unroll 3- to 4-foot chicken wire or welded wire along the posts. Before you fasten it, bend the bottom foot outward at a right angle so it lies flat in the bottom of the trench.
- Fasten the wire to the posts with fence clips, wire ties, or staples.
- Fill the trench back in. Animals that dig at the fence hit the buried wire and give up.
Groundhogs and raccoons climb. Leave the top foot of the wire unattached, so it flops backward when an animal tries to climb over. For raccoons, add a strand of electric wire a few inches above the top of the fence.
For deer, use taller welded wire on taller posts, about 8 feet in all. Some gardeners add a single electric wire about 2½ feet high and 3 feet outside a 5-foot fence; the two together make deer hesitate to jump.
How to Build a Wooden Garden Fence
Wood is easy to work with, looks good, and can be built tall or short, solid or open. A tall fence on the west side gives afternoon shade, and an open, slatted fence slows the wind better than a solid one.
Choosing the wood
- Cedar and redwood: Naturally rot-resistant and beautiful. They cost the most, but a well-built cedar or redwood fence lasts for many years.
- Pine: Much cheaper, but it rots unless it's treated or painted, and it won't last as long.
- Hardware: Use galvanized or stainless steel nails, screws, and brackets, so they don't rust.
Setting the posts and building the fence
- Dig post holes about three times as wide as the posts. Set about one-third of each post in the ground, at least 2 feet deep.
- Put a few inches of coarse gravel in the bottom of each hole, so water drains away and the post doesn't rot.
- Set the post and fill around it with concrete mix (or packed gravel and soil).
- Check that the post is straight with a level, front and side, while the concrete is still wet.
- Let the posts set for a day or two.
- Attach the horizontal rails (stringers), checking each one with the level.
- Attach the boards, pickets, or wire to the rails.
★ SaveHave fun with paint. A plain wooden fence can be painted a cheerful color, or even to look like a row of colored pencils!
Portable and Temporary Garden Fences
Sometimes you only need to protect a few plants for a few weeks. Movable panels are quick to make and easy to store, and they are among the simplest garden fence plans to follow.
- Cut several 5-foot lengths of chicken wire with 1-inch holes.
- Fasten a fiberglass or metal stake to each end of every panel. Let each stake stick out a foot below the wire, so you can push it into the ground.
- Set the panels around young broccoli, lettuce, beans, or anything the rabbits like.
- When the plants are big enough, pull up the panels and store them for next year.
Row covers work too. Lightweight floating row cover laid over young crops keeps out rabbits and groundhogs, as well as many insects. Hold the edges down with soil, rocks, or garden staples.
Cheap Garden Fence Ideas
★ SaveA cheap garden fence doesn't have to look cheap. Here are some low-cost ideas:
- Wooden pallets: Free or nearly free. Look for the "HT" stamp, which means heat-treated; avoid pallets stamped "MB," which were treated with a chemical.
- Recycled lumber, windows, and doors: Check building-material recycling stores and free listings.
- Branches and poles: Make a rustic fence from wood you already have.
- Lattice panels: Inexpensive, and a good trellis for climbing vegetables.
- T-posts and wire: The cheapest way to fence a large garden.
A pretty fence helps in winter, too. After harvest, mulch and cover crops aren't much to look at. An attractive fence, even an inexpensive one, gives the garden a tidy look all year.
Ornamental Garden Fence Ideas
★ SaveAn ornamental fence frames the garden like a picture. It also blocks wind, gives climbing plants a built-in trellis, and hides the garden during its less attractive stages.
Wrought iron and aluminum fences are strong and long-lasting, and you can see the garden through them. Choose one with bars close enough together to keep out the animals in your area, or add wire along the bottom.
Picket and lattice fences come in wood or low-maintenance vinyl that never needs painting.
★ SaveGarden fences are as old as gardens. In medieval kitchen gardens, stone walls and hedges kept out animals and weather, held the sun's warmth, and gave climbing plants something to grow on. Cabbage, leeks, onions, garlic, peas, beans, and herbs grew in rectangular beds with paths between them, much like many gardens today.
Living Hedge Garden Fences
★ SaveA living hedge is a beautiful, long-lasting fence. It blocks wind, gives birds and bees a home, and makes a soft green background for the garden.
- Evergreen hedges: Boxwood, viburnum (evergreen kinds), photinia, and, in warm climates, rosemary and pineapple guava.
- Hedges that lose their leaves in winter: Hawthorn and chokeberry, which still make a fence during the growing season.
- Privet: Fast-growing and easy to trim, but it spreads into wild areas in some regions. Check your local list of invasive plants first.
Hedges take a few years to fill in, so put up a simple wire fence while you wait, and keep it along the bottom to stop rabbits. Water young hedge plants regularly until they are established, and trim them each year.
For a lovely entrance, plant a hedge around the garden and set a wooden gate under an arbor.
Garden Fence Plans Questions
- How far apart should fence posts be?
- About 6 to 8 feet apart for a wire fence, and about 8 feet apart for a wooden fence with rails. Always put a post at each corner and on each side of the gate.
- How deep should fence posts be set?
- About one-third of the post's length, and at least 2 feet deep. Taller fences and windy spots need deeper posts.
- What is the cheapest garden fence to build?
- Chicken wire or welded wire on metal T-posts. Wooden pallets and recycled lumber are also very low-cost.
- Are wooden pallets safe for a garden fence?
- Look for the "HT" stamp, which means the pallet was heat-treated. Avoid pallets stamped "MB," which were treated with a chemical, and any pallet that looks stained or oily.
- How wide should a garden gate be?
- At least 3 feet wide, or 4 feet if you use a wheelbarrow or garden cart.
- Do I need a permit to build a garden fence?
- Sometimes. Check with your town or homeowner association about height limits and how close a fence can be to the street or property line.
More Garden Care Guides
My short garden email, Get the Dirt, comes Saturday mornings.
Sign Up for My Free Newsletter