1. Fences, Fencing, Barriers and Walls
Kilroy wuz here
Stone, vegetation, wood, metal and other barriers used in parks & recreation areas.

2. “Good fences make good neighbors.” –Robert Frost
“Anytime you see a turtle up on top of a fence post, you know he had some help.”—Alex Haley
“Don’t whiz on the electric fence.”
“A fence lasts three years, a dog lasts three fences, a horse lasts three dogs, and a man lasts three horses.” –German proverb
“Good fences make good neighbors.” –Robert Frost
“Ugly Fences make ugly neighbors” –Richard Clovis
“Everyone pushes a falling fence.”
1.Robert Frost, Mending Wall; they also keep bad neighbors at bay.
Carl Sandburg
“The grass may be greener on the other side of the fence, but you still have to mow it.”
“Love your neighbor as yourself, but don’t take down the fence.” – Carl Sandburg

3. Fences, Fencing, and Walls
A fence is a freestanding structure designed to restrict or prevent movement across a barrier. A wall is fencing which blocks vision as well as passage.

4. Fences and Walls
Fences can be
physical
or symbolic.

5. Purpose of Fences/Walls
Fenced areas can be either
Enclosures (areas enclosed within a fence), or
Exclosures (areas from which animals or people are excluded)—livestock or wildlife fences.
A BLM exclosure fence which prevents access to livestock on the near side.

6. Fences & Walls Fences and walls can be
Decorative (aesthetic vs. Functional),
Serve as a Divider,
Control Entrance or Exit,
Direct Pedestrian Traffic Flow, or be a
A Combination of these

7. Decorative Fencing
Decorative fencing is used to enhance the aesthetic appeal of an area.
It may be used to screen off an area (back of service building, trash collection site, etc.)
It can also be to support and show off climbing vegetation.
It can be used to support panels to display notices or information or to add color to a site.
Screening of junk yards from view

8. Fences as Dividers
As a divider, fencing can be used to demarcate or delineate areas with different functions (e.g., a low fence to separate active play vs. rest or passive areas).
They can be used to define areas for different sports in an otherwise undifferentiated field or open space.

9. Fences to Direct Traffic Flow
Particularly with pedestrians, fences can be used to direct the flow of traffic along certain channels.
Sometimes, the fencing may be for safety purposes, to prevent people from walking into dangerous situations.
Fencing can also be used to protect endangered environments from unnecessary traffic.
Fencing can reduce the appearance of pedestrian created trails where they are not wanted.

10. Fencing to Control Entrance
If an admission fee is charged, fencing and walls will reduce the access points so that fees may be collected.
Fences can also control the number of people admitted so that site capacity is not exceeded

11. Fencing to Control Egress
Fencing, such as at a zoo, prevents wild animals from exiting and possibly causing injury to a person.
Fencing can contain children and others from leaving in a direction of potential hazard.

12. Fencing can contain play equipment (balls, etc
Fencing can contain play equipment (balls, etc.) and reduce risk of injury to children dashing out of the park.
Fencing can also be used to contain blowing trash (at a dump or landfill), and to reduce noise and dust arising from construction sites

13. Multipurpose Fencing
Fencing may have multiple purposes as previously described.
The purpose of the fence may affect the type of fencing material used.
A fence used to control admission, for example, can also be decorative in nature.

14. Types of Fences Fencing can be typed by the primary material used
Vegetation
Wood
Metal
Stone
Plastic or vinyl

15. Vegetation
Live fences include hedges composed of either dense-growing or thorny vegetation.
Cactus, roses, and brambles can make effective fences, but these are not recommended for park and recreation areas.
What are the advantages/disadvantages of each of these types depicted?

16. Live fences can also be ornamental such as this woven willow fence in Ohio.

17. Bamboo Fencing
Bamboo, either alive or cut, is a popular fencing material.

18. Wooden Fences Wood is a versatile material for fencing
It is relatively inexpensive and can be fairly durable if properly maintained
Wood is a natural material and may crack or split when used outdoors. It will also mature to a silvery gray color.
All wood will eventually rot, particularly when in contact with the ground
Treated support posts set in concrete will result in longer fence life

19. Fence Problems
Neighbor’s wooden fence after storm (shingles also)

20. Examples of Wood Fences
A Privacy Fence
A simple Pickett Fence
A trellis type fence
A palisade type picket fence

21. Palisade Fences
A Palisade fence
at Jamestown

22. Shadowbox Fence
Advantages—privacy, wind passage

23. Rail Fences

24. Closeboard Fence
Popular in country estates, sometimes with wire as shown.
Boards will have feathered edges and posts may be mortised to hold the boards.
A mortise or mortice is a cavity cut into a timber to receive a tenon

25. Examples of Mortice and Tenon joints

26. Wood Panel

27. Plastic Fencing Advantages—cheap, pretty when new, no painting
Disadvantages—not durable

28. Metal Fences
Metal fencing tends to be more expensive to purchase and install than comparable wood fences.
However, metal fencing is more durable and requires less maintenance
Types of metal fences include:
Chain link (Cyclone) fencing—iron with zinc or plastic covering or aluminum
Wrought iron (decorative fencing)
Wire (barbed wire, electric fences)
Security fences

29. Chain Link
Double-knuckle fence
Barbed fence

30. Wrought Iron
Once common, but very expensive and ornamental.

31. Wire

32. Security

33. Earth and Stone
Dry stone walls
(no mortar used)

34. Ha-Has
View from the manor

35. Ha-Has
View toward the manor

36. Ha-Has
Another view

37. Fences that Hide

38. Miscellaneous Fences
Fence used for display
For Equestrian Events

39. Miscellaneous Fences
Silt Fence

40. Fun Fencing
Don’t Fence Me In, a Cole Porter song, was a monster hit for Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters during World War II.
Fence-net fashions (aka fish-net) have been popular since ancient Egypt

41. This fence is for the birds…

43. Surfboard Fence

44. Car Fence—Ferris, Texas, 1972

45. Invisible Fencing
Some fences actually are invisible—electronic dog fences, for example. This wrought-iron fence was stolen.

46. Fence Art