Garden walls, doors offer more than just security
Garden rooms have floors, ceilings, and walls that have doors and windows. Like the doors and windows of a house, the garden’s fences and gates separate spaces while allowing glimpses into others. As with all garden elements, the more thought given their usage, the more they will contribute to a well-built garden.
There are a number of reasons most surround their property with fencing, security and privacy being the most common in an urban garden. A fence deters would-be thieves and helps screen neighbors who seem to be living on top of you. If you prefer your breakfast room window without window shades, a tall fence or solid wall of evergreen plants provides the privacy that allows you to eat breakfast without an audience.
The edges surrounding a garden can be soft or hard while creating a frame to establish the garden setting. Fences and hedges provide a sense of enclosure and give boundary to the garden room.
Keep in mind your garden’s character and the garden wall’s purpose when selecting materials. Ornamental wrought iron makes a perfect entrance for a formal garden, but may not be the right choice for the casual garden. If privacy is your goal, a wrought-iron fence won’t achieve it unless you supplement it with plantings of vines or hedges. The downside to this approach is that you pay a premium price for wrought-iron fencing and then spend even more money covering it up.
Utility panel or open picket fences lend themselves to an air of informality. Some believe open fences are less secure. However, they offer visibility into an area, which can be a security plus, while allowing airflow into the garden, thwarting summer’s pesky mosquitoes. If privacy is your primary goal, a combination of solid fencing topped with wooden lattice or metal panels may offer a suitable compromise.
Openings in fences and hedges become doors and windows in the garden room. Gates indicate to visitors a movement from public to private spaces and suggest the character of the garden beyond. The entry into the garden can be through a solid wall with a gate or it can be as subtle as two pots flanking a walk.
Any opening in the garden wall can act as a gate as it leads the visitor into a different space. Gates frame the view into and within the garden, while marking a transition from one area to the next. Detail of and around the gate em- phasizes its importance.
For example, a combination of materials, additional trim, added color or alternate patterns not appearing in other fence sections can signal the main entry to and from the garden. If you are fencing off a service yard, a simple wooden gate would be appropriate and inconspicuous.
Walking through a gate slows movement through the garden. This allows the visitor time to pause and notice a variety of garden features that await them. The sound of water from a nearby fountain, the fragrance of a climbing rose trained over the gate, or the time on a sundial are readily enjoyed by this slower pace. Give more detail to those plantings near the entry gate where guests will have time to appreciate them.