Bamboo Fence Building

Bamboo fence building is becoming popular in recent years as are Japanese garden designs.

Japanese gardens often include fences that are made from bamboos.

Not only are these fences structurally strong they can be designed and built to suit your garden whether it is small or large and are aesthetically pleasing.

DIY Fencing

If you like doing DIY (do it yourself) and want to build your own bamboo fencing, you should consider rolled fences with caps and moldings.

Portable screens are also a good consideration for DIY bamboo fencing.

10 Tips for Building Your Own Fencing

When designing your project, and in assessment of quantities of materials, keep it in mind that the canes will be varied.
Some things to watch out for are; position of joints, cracks, colour, straightness, and taper.
Round posts will match the bamboo better than square posts.
Use pressure-treated hardwood for the fence posts that come into contact with the ground, up to 4" x 4" is advised.
Using treated hardwood for posts is recommended because continuous contact with soil, particularly if wet, can cause bamboo to rot after 3-4 years. Treated hardwood posts will last longer.
Using a fine bladed hacksaw to cut the canes is recommended
To prevent collection of water inside the canes cut above the joint at the top, diagonally or vertically, so that the membrane can help provide protection.
Bamboo can crack or be crushed if you nail directly into it in the same way that wood can. To prevent this drill holes prior to nailing that are fractionally bigger than the nail and be careful with the hammer to avoid crushing the cane. Alternatively use a nail gun/driver.
Recommended preservatives are; petroleum base preservatives, and oils such as hemp.
As your fencing ages it may change colour and crack through expanding and contracting in different temperatures and weather conditions. This is natural and will not affect the strength of the fencing... it will provide character!

Bamboo Border

Amazon.com Widgets

Living Alternatives to Fixed Fencing

Bamboo fence building may not be suitable for you so consider that hedges, windbreaks and screens grown from live plants.

They make great alternatives to solid fence panels and can often be more effective in stopping the wind.

If you grow a privacy screen, you can harvest some of it to turn it into a fencing panel or garden edging!

If you are interested I have sections on this web site that provide more detail on live fencing, see below.

Hedge

Bamboo garden hedges can be very effective, can be cut or trimmed, or even shaped, in the same way as you would normally do with traditional hedging.

See this list of suitable species with a detailed guide to bamboo hedging

Privacy Screen

Bamboos can be cultivated into excellent garden privacy screens and can be cut or trimmed to achieve a privacy screen that compliments your garden design.

The main difference between a hedge and a privacy screen is that screens are taller. Hedges are much shorter and generally have a more formal appearance.

See this list of species that are suitable at Bamboo Screen

Windbreak

Bamboos can be cultivated, cut, trimmed, or harvested and therefore make ideal domestic garden or commercial windbreaks.

For a guide to windbreaks see my page that includes; wind force reduction, flexibility, root mass, stability, benefits, cultivation and suitable species.

More at Bamboo Wind Break