Fence decorations

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Fences and boundary walls are a necessary element to any outside space or boundary.  Most of the times these are build with timber fences. However these can also me wire mesh, brickwork, block work or other masonry. Generally when fences and boundaries are first put up they can look quite acceptable and even pleasing to the eye.

However in time the vigour’s of the outside environment can take its toll on fences and boundary walls. There may be times when it seems the best course of action is to cover these with some fence decorations. This can because there is a big event planned such as a wedding or birthday.

​Simply you may just feel the garden needs sprucing up a little.  Fence decorations can be effective in turning a dull boring fence into a work of excellence. This may seem a little ambitious but there plenty of things you can do to make your fences easy on the eye.

With their vertical surfaces and dry, shaded undersides fences can seem devoid of possibilities in most gardens. In fact fences have always created a bit of a head ache for most garden designers over the years.

​The truth is vertical boundaries of any sort can offer potential opportunities in all sorts of ways. Whether it’s adding colour, attracting wildlife, growing fruit, or just having fun! Fence decorations can transform a garden in ways you never though possible.

Solar fence decorations

Fences and boundaries in general can become shaded and darker places of the garden. This combined with rain shadow can render them not the perfect place for plants. One of the main visual strengths of fences though is they have a strong backdrop perfect for projecting light. Although this is not the best fence decorations solution for during the day it can be very effective.
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This is especially the case if you intend on having many evenings with friends outdoors. Bear in mind lights can be used in addition to other fence decoration ideas later in this article. Solar fence decorations have the added benefit of not needing any continuous mains power being better for the environment.

Solar wall lights

​Solar wall lights come in a wide array of styles, colours and sizes. These are perfect for accentuating the vertical lines of fence posts all the way along the boundary. Solar wall lights also can project various colours such as red, green and blue to completely transform the feel of the garden at night. 

Solar string lights

Solar string lights also come in multiple styles and can bring a very festive feel to the garden as a whole. The main advantage of string lights is they can be used to frame the garden space at night. String lights can also be laid in a path to spell out special messages along fences. This is perfect for personal family events and gatherings.

Solar net lights

Solar net lights are the perfect way to completely cover a fence with colour and light at night. These are the most effective fence decorations for a night time display. They can be fixed tightly to a fence or allowed to hang down from the top. The latter will allow for gentle movement in the night time breeze.

Animal fence decorations

Animals bring us joy and are a visual reminder that we share the world with amazing creatures. Nothing man made can recreate the beauty of some of the animals that walk our planet.

For millennia man has decorated his environment with depictions of wild animals to celebrate their environment. Even in modern times this has not changed. Animal ornaments and paintings are as popular today as they were thousands of years ago.

​It is no surprise therefore that they also make great fence decorations. From vibrant ladybirds to beautiful peacock animal wall art is perfect for decorating garden fences. We have displayed some popular ones on Amazon below.

Artificial plants fence decorations

Most gardeners and even people for that matter love to see lush green environments. Gardens provide most of us with the only real option to access this within viewing distance of our homes.

This can be quite concerning especially for people living within very urban environments. It has been proven that green spaces can be good for mental health and well being. The problem is not everyone is a keen gardener and gardens full of large plants are difficult to maintain.
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These Fence decorations in the form of artificial plant screens could be the perfect solution. These weather proof artificial foliage fence decorations will cover up unsightly boundaries without the plant care or maintenance.

Living green wall fence decorations

Without a doubt the best way to green a fence ideally is with real living plant material. Even though artificial foliage can look good there will be no seasonal interest or flowering. In addition to this living plants can have some very ecological benefits to our surrounding environment. Plants through photosynthesis produce oxygen which feeds the air we breathe with oxygen.

Plants also help to cool down urban gardens in summer and purify the air of pollutants. The only real way to utilise your fence as a new growing area is by creating a green wall. This can be done by installing a modular system or pocket system. Either a lattice of planting trays of fabric pockets are fixed to the fence and then filled with soil. 

​These can create quite dramatic and inspirational planting schemes. By using plants with varying contrasts striking displays can be created. Herbs and leafy green vegetables can also be grown to create a living edible wall!

These elaborate fence decorations are all possible as long as you water every day in summer or install drip feed irrigation. Some modular systems come with their own watering system build in.
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Alternatively with smaller fabric systems dry loving plants such as sedums can be grown. We have displayed some of these living wall fence decoration systems below.

Vine supporting fence decorations

For many the idea for heavy soil laden modular cells and fences full of more plants can be a step too far. This is especially the case with regular watering in summer or installing irrigation. There is no doubt however that there real benefits of living plants acting as eco friendly fence decorations.

The other option is to grow decorative or fruiting, climbing plants up the face of the fence. With careful species selection and pruning this can be an effective way to cover a fence. The best way to train climbing plants up a fence is by fixing a wire system. This can be done by fixing steel eye bolts to fence posts and tightening horticultural wire between the fixings.
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The result is a horizontal cable system for climbing plants to grow. If using this system try to grow delicate evergreen climbers. These will not get too thick at the base and heavy for the structure and look great all year round.

Fruit bushes and trees

Small fruit bushes and trees can be carefully pruned up against a fence to completely cover it. This method will require meticulous pruning every year but the results can be extraordinary. 

​Fruits like pears, peaches and even figs can be grown this way covering your fence with tasty treats. A word of caution this is not ideal for very small gardens. Even with regular pruning fruit trees will also take up some horizontal spaces making a garden slightly narrower.

Lattice fence decorations

Lattice timber and metal frames can also be effective fence decorations. With these you have the opportunity to hang extra decorations or grow things up. These can come in a wide range of styles and materials. Below we have left some suggestions of these.

Screening

Screening can come in many forms but one of its many benefits is it can hide unsightly fences and create a consistent surface. The main types of these are bamboo, reed and willow screening. These are usually sold in rolls and fixed to the fence beneath. Below is some examples of typical garden screening.

Hanging fence decorations

A great way to decorate your fence is to hang novelty things from it. One of the most common ways of doing this is with hanging baskets. Hanging baskets are typically suspended pots filled with soil and planted with decorative plants.

These baskets usually turn into magnificent floral displays in the summer time. With daily watering hanging baskets can become great fence decorations your neighbours will envy you for!

​The best way to suspend these is with triangular metal brackets which hold the baskets a few inches from the fence. When it comes to hanging fence decorations there are many options so we have put some good examples below.

Fence decorations for wildlife

Commonly fences will seem completely inadequate for supporting any form of interest or life for that matter! However it is completely possible for a fence to be both interesting and perfect for all sorts of wildlife. One of the best ways to achieve this is with insect hotels!
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These brilliant boxes of cane tubes and dense nooks and crannies are perfect for solitary insects to live. Insect hotels can provide nesting opportunities for beneficial insects eat your garden pests. The varying textures and colours of insect hotels really jazz up standard fences making them cool fence decor. 

One habitat type which has become particularly rare in modern gardens is dead wood. Old decaying branches and logs provide food and shelter for rare beetles and over wintering insects. Small logs and old branches can be fixed tightly to fences to create naturalistic cladding.
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Small song birds such as robins like to nest about 5 foot off the ground. Why not decorate the tops of your fences with nesting boxes to encourage this friend of the garden. Please note probably not a great idea if you have local cats. 

Painting

It may in many ways seem obvious to paint a fence especially if it is getting old and tired. As well as making it look much better good quality paint will assist in prolonging a fence considerably.

​Even though painting is a great decoration option very few people do it. Perhaps for some it is scary to let your creative flare go wild and paint your fence with bright colours. So in order to persuade you we have shown some inspirational examples here.

Garden mirrors

​Garden mirrors are a great method of decorating your garden fences. They can easily be attached to vertical surfaces and can give the illusion a space is bigger than it really is.  Mirrors also make a space lighter which means they are perfect for small town gardens. They come in a wide range of styles and sizes; we have left some links to some on Amazon here.

Artificial lawn

​This may seem like a rather weird and wonderful suggestion but artificial lawn is effective on vertical structures. If you want to cover and unsightly fence or wall fake lawn provides a soft and fine textured surface. This can become a novelty fence decoration and blur the line between what is garden and boundary.  Artificial lawn can be fixed to fences with nails or strong adhesives. 

More fence decorations ideas

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