Winter Projects

Pinus contorta 'Chief Joseph'

I was really too harsh in my last post concerning the weather. It has actually been a very mild winter, and looking back, I see that I have completed several projects.

The first, back in November, was a redo of the twig fence. This has been an ongoing project that has left me unsatisfied. At the beginning, I just piled the twigs up, along an existing chain fence, and soon realized that they would never stand on their own. Critters (squirrels!) continually knocked twigs out of the arrangement, but over time, it was simply gravity that caused problems. I used various methods to try and keep the twigs in place, including using wire to tie them and fence posts to brace them. All temporary solutions. Gravity always reared its ugly head. 

At the end of summer, I decided on a different approach. The sheer weight of the twigs made a deep wall impractical, so I decided to construct a shallower fence and secure it with a stronger support. 

This is how it looked, before I started to dismantle it (not too bad in this section, but very heavy and falling apart in other areas) -

This time, I used large cedar posts to brace the twigs against the chain fence. I placed the posts about every eight feet or so, with only 5-6 inches between the posts and the chain fence. The length of the fence runs along the back of our lot and runs about 112 feet. I worked on and off on this and managed to finish it within a month. I love doing this - it becomes a Zen-like experience for me, and I find it quite pleasurable. It is still a work in progress, as I would like the fence taller, so I'm adding twigs as I get them.

Project #2 was much quicker - a cattle panel arch. The 'Feelin' Blue' cedar (Cedrus deodora) has just kept growing. Not the best location, I'm afraid, but nowhere to move it. I wanted a simple arch to support it, but they are so overpriced. I forget how I stumbled upon this idea. I bought the cattle panel at Wilco for around $30. I watched a video on how to do it, and it wasn't difficult. I did not like the look of fence posts to secure it, and I came up with the idea of placing PVC tubes into the ground and sticking the prongs at the bottom of the panels into them. It worked (a rare instance of me constructing something that works!).

Project #3 - Gabion mailbox posts. The part I dreaded - putting the gabion cage together - turned out to be the simplest. Whoever came up with this idea was a genius. Each corner of the cage is secured by a long spiral piece that winds its way down, wrapping itself around each rung. It is fun to watch after you place one at the top and watch it spiral its way down - fascinating! 

No, the hardest part was filling it with rocks. I made the second one (the main one),  more difficult by going for a layered effect with two types of rock. It was like forcing pieces of a jigsaw puzzle together. The larger rocks, especially, were tricky to place. I'm not 100% pleased with it, but it will have to do for now.

The first one I did was for our old mailbox in the back garden. We use it to store garden tools. I used only the rainbow colored stones for this one and it was not as difficult. 

For each, I had to cut out a portion of the bottom cage panel so that it would fit around the mailbox post. 

Overall, I'm pleased with the results. I think I will like it better once the plants and vines soften it this summer. 

Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy