Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
that you check out Gail Damerow's
Fences for Pasture and Garden
. Gail has done
a really great job on the topic in her book and includes all the information
you'll need on selecting materials, using the proper tools, construction tricks
and techniques, and maintenance requirements. (See Resources.)
Types of Fencing
For perimeters, the fence should be at least 48 inches (1.2 m) tall and tight,
with only small spaces between the fencing material. This type of an arrange-
ment can be constructed from barbed wire, wooden rails, woven wire, and
smooth electric wire (in either high- or low-tensile varieties), or a combina-
tion of several types.
Barbed-wire fencing.
Invented in the mid-1800s, barbed wire had its place
in history, but today, in the age of high-quality electric-fencing technology,
barbed wire is the least desirable choice for containing sheep. For obvious
reasons, you will fi nd barbed wire diffi cult and unpleasant to use, and animals
that get caught up in a barbed-wire fence can hurt themselves badly. Another
problem with barbed wire is that making an effective perimeter requires at
least six, and preferably eight, strands of wire and that's a lot. By the time you
build a barbed-wire sheep fence, you've spent a whole lot of money.
Wooden rail fences.
An attractive option that can be constructed to keep
sheep in, rail fences are unfortunately ineffi cient at keeping predators out.
A barbed wire or electric wire can be run at the bottom of a rail fence to
THREE TYPES OF FENCING FOR SHEEP
rails 1"
×
6"
rough
posts 8' max.
centers
5"
5"
5"
5"
5"
8"
6"
8"
6"
53"
8"
2"
53"
4"
51"
8"
3"
6"
6"
6"
4"
barbed wire
3"
barbed wire
fencing and
barbed wire
board fence with
barbed wire at base
