Less Lawn Mess, More Garden

How the Right Fence Will Keep Your Lawn Beautiful

Want to build an outdoor space that’s the envy of the neighborhood? Consider installing a fence — they aren’t going out of style anytime soon, and they provide privacy and security while improving your home’s aesthetics.

Cultivating an Outdoor Space

Your home has distinct rooms that serve specific purposes. Dining rooms are for eating, kitchens are for preparing food, and bedrooms are for sleeping. Your lawn can be every bit as customized as your home’s interior, and fencing is the easiest and most effective way to define an outdoor space.

Want to install an outdoor spa or pool? A tall, solid vinyl fence will give your family privacy, but a vegetable garden would be better suited with a fence that lets light through. Regardless of the style you choose, any fence will clearly set that space apart from the rest of your yard. Once your fences are up, you can install patios, garden beds, and other landscaping features.

Complementary Styles

There’s no single correct fence style or design for your home, but these basic guidelines will help narrow the search. Take a look at your neighborhood. Do most of the yards on your street have white picket fences? A chain link fence might look out of place. Picking a style that’s similar to existing neighborhood fences is generally a safe bet.

The aforementioned picket fence is a longtime favorite in many communities, but newer homes often look sharper with the clean simplicity and straight lines offered by modern fences. Don’t choose a fence because you like how it looks by itself. Choose a fence because it works with your home and your neighborhood.

The First Line of Defense Against Weeds

Besides privacy, fences serve a number of practical purposes. They’re made out of solid materials designed to last decades, so they can help prevent the spread of weeds throughout your lawn. Even if your fence doesn’t provide a solid barrier along the ground, you can bury weed cloth or a plastic barrier several inches into the ground to prevent weeds from passing underneath.

Protecting the Fence

Weed eaters are perfect for trimming hard-to-mow areas, but the plastic string can quickly gouge wood fences, which will make them more susceptible to moisture and dry rot. Installing a flower bed is an easy fix that will keep your mower and weed eater away from the fence, and by decreasing the size of your turfed yard, you’ll save time each week on mowing.

Mulch also makes repainting your fence a breeze. Just clear the mulch six inches away from the fence, and use a paint sprayer to apply a fresh coat of paint twice in a single afternoon. It doesn’t matter if you overspray — just spread the mulch back over the bare dirt, and you’re good to go.

If you want some more design ideas,  contact one of our New England fencing specialists to find out how to transform your yard!