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Green Building Bible, Fourth Edition
Green Building Bible, fourth edition (both books)
These two books are the perfect starting place to help you get to grips with one of the most vitally important aspects of our society - our homes and living environment.

PLEASE NOTE: A download link for Volume 1 will be sent to you by email and Volume 2 will be sent to you by post as a book.
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General: living fence

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1 to 29 of 29

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    Looking for a low cost option for a planted fence that does not contain rottable or degradable materials such as rusting metal or wood? Want something that is max. 300mm wide, that can be planted on both sides into a lightweight hydroponic growing medium, using grasses, sedums and such. Any ideas?
    • CommentAuthortony
    • CommentTimeDec 2nd 2013
     
    would a hedge count?
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      CommentAuthorfostertom
    • CommentTimeDec 2nd 2013
     
    No this must be something interesting and special-purpose - tell us more.
  4.  
    Dry stone wall filled with compost using micro stones. Plant with creeping herbs for aroma if south facing and ferns on north facing.
    • CommentAuthorDarylP
    • CommentTimeDec 2nd 2013
     
    Sounds like the walls on Anglesey / Ynys Mon.....?
    Slate walls, filled up with earth. Planted with all kinds of grassess & other flora. They look like a 'solid' hedge but you wouldn't want to push through one!:bigsmile:
    • CommentAuthorTimber
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013
     
    Cut, woven and re-planted willow - they built a bridge out of the stuff!
    • CommentAuthorowlman
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013
     
    Tufa, either natural , expensive I guess, or cast your own blocks with a man made variant of the natural stuff or a combination. You can then plant with all the lime loving plants. Use it on its own or in combination with one or two of the others above.
  8.  
    Horticultural rockwool & stainless chicken wire?
  9.  
    Posted By: archess200Looking for a low cost option for a planted fence that does not contain rottable or degradable materials such as rusting metal or wood? Want something that is max. 300mm wide

    You haven't mentioned height. That could be relevant?
    Also are you looking for a structure that has gaps to allow air flow? Something 300mm wide & without gaps would sound more like a wall than a fence, to me?
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      CommentAuthorSteamyTea
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013 edited
     
    Cornish Hedges, plays havoc with plastic bumpers!
    •  
      CommentAuthorfostertom
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013
     
    and hub caps
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      CommentAuthorSteamyTea
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013 edited
     
    Yep, they vanished a long time ago when getting out of the way of a caravan being towed from Devon to Penwith :wink:

    I do like Cornish Hedges though, traditionally they have Hawthorne weaved on the top.
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      CommentAuthorfostertom
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013
     
    A close shave
  14.  
    My lasting recollection of a Cornish hedge was the one I encountered many years ago..........the b....y thing had a stone wall in the middle of it. Result - bent wing and the tracking knocked for six.
  15.  
    Next you will be saying you have narrow lanes thats why you have to get so close to the hedges.
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      CommentAuthorSteamyTea
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013
     
    Not judging by the central barrier on the A30, plenty of room to miss it, but few do.
    I blame St. Austell Brewery, HSD is known as High Speed Death down here.
    Alcohol did for this lad:
    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1305336/Man-dies-trying-leap-30ft-Cornwall-harbour-Rover-hatchback.html
    • CommentAuthorTimber
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013
     
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      CommentAuthorfostertom
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013
     
    Looks lovely - but which bits are living (presumably means still growing) and therefore won't rot for a while. The woven deck obviously not growing, mainly free-draining from rain, but will still rot.

    Wonder if you cd do this by hedgelaying methods, laying any typical hedge inward from both sides.
    • CommentAuthorskyewright
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013 edited
     
    Posted By: fostertomLooks lovely - but which bits are living (presumably means still growing) and therefore won't rot for a while.

    It looks to me as though the arches under the bridge and the handrail are living willow.

    Pity there isn't any mention of size. Judging by the hand rail maybe 2m span at most?

    The handrail looks like whips planted each side then joined as they overlap in the middle?

    The main arches might be single length planted at both ends? Planting both ends of a willow like that certainly works (I've done it).

    Whichever approach they've taken, once it gets going most of the growth will naturally tend to be from the highest points.

    Funny how pictures of living willow structures nearly always show the item just constructed, or in the first year...
    •  
      CommentAuthorfostertom
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013 edited
     
    Needs annual pruning? Or does it just get out of hand and mis-shapen?

    Plant both ends - interesting - I thought plants mysteriously know which end is 'up' even when the eye can't tell.
    • CommentAuthorTimber
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013
     
    As I understand it all of the structure is growing, even the deck (although it has a timber batten walking surface over for H&S reasons).
  22.  
    Posted By: fostertomNeeds annual pruning? Or does it just get out of hand and mis-shapen?

    If it's not pruned it would likely end up very top heavy. I have a short tunnel (about 3m long & tall enough to walk through) & I need to lop the new top growth off that at least in the autumn if not before else the long "flags" catch the wind too much & put a lot of stress on the structure.

    N.B. I'm just an amateur with quite a lot of willow to hand...

    Plant both ends - interesting - I thought plants mysteriously know which end is 'up' even when the eye can't tell.

    Planting upside down wouldn't do for somethings but willow is very keen to grow, so both ends root.

    As an experiment I used a series of overlapping hoops to make a short windbreak/hurdle in a gap. That was 4 or five years ago. Almost all the growth is from the top of the hoops, but it's fine.
  23.  
    Posted By: TimberAs I understand it all of the structure is growing, even the deck (although it has a timber batten walking surface over for H&S reasons).

    Taking another look the woven deck does look like currently live whips, but I can't see how the ones more than a short distance from the bank could be rooted in anyway? Also sap doesn't like travelling down so I don't see how growth would be likely to extend very far along the weave even for rooted parts of the woven deck? Much more likely for new growth to try to break from the first high point in the weave.
    • CommentAuthorTimber
    • CommentTimeDec 3rd 2013
     
    Yeah I dunno - I caught the end of a talk some dude was giving at Timber Expo this year so I only got half the story.
  25.  
    The fence is alongside a footpath, so only a little sideways growth. I want it to be 6 ft. high in places, and able to sculpt the top into waves. Had thought of a willow hedge, but concerned about unwanted suckers shooting up elsewhere. It is also within 1m of a building, so root disturbed is highly undesirable. Don't know whether willow creates this problem, but as it is a moisture-loving plant, it could suck water from the soil with possible subsidence threats.

    The idea I have is a set of panels slotted over the usual ugly concrete posts. The panels are a series of vertical tubes that holes can be made in to take the plants, and the tubes would be filled with a vermiculite-soil or the aforementioned horticultural rockwool, whatever that may be. Grasses or sedum-type plants would then cover the panel completely, and with a drip watering system from the first floor bath. All sorted, just the panels required.

    This could be a new marketing venture, but I can't afford the design/registration/manufacturing time. Want it up by next year.
    Have seen an idea with pallets, but they rot. Galvanised heavy chicken wire may sag with the weight of wet rockwool, and it would eventually rust - don't tell me galvanising is above this.

    Any more ideas?
  26.  
    •  
      CommentAuthorSteamyTea
    • CommentTimeDec 6th 2013 edited
     
    Stainless corrodes if it is totally immersed in water, rock or soil (ask any sports climber). Galvanised is best as it self heals.
  28.  
    Can you pleach anything from ground level?

    Why not having something that will rot for initial support for a few years, then it will rot leaving you a robust barrier?

    Ferdinand
    • CommentAuthorJonti
    • CommentTimeDec 9th 2013
     
    Try gorse. You can shape it and it regrows from the bottom. It is thick when cut right and very few people will damage it due to its prickly nature.

    Jonti

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