“šæ Imagine a man who decides to forgo a traditional fence and instead plants 3,000 (yes, three thousand!) cuttings around his property. A bold bet, right? š² Wondering what became of this hedge over the years? Discover the incredible transformation of this natural fence in three years. š± Few would dare to take the leap, but would you be brave enough to try it? š Read on to find out more!” š š š
Few people would dare opt for a natural fence like this. Before we start, hereās a little joke on the subject:
A thief breaks into the house of a rich, single woman, looking for jewelry and furs. Just at the worst moment, the “very nice” lady of the house returns from an evening out with friends. The thief hides in a closet. The lady goes to bed and falls asleep. The thief waits a bit, puts on the lady’s fur, and carefully heads for the door. Suddenly, the woman opens her eyes and asks:
Who are you?
Iām the mite.
And why are you wearing the fur?
Iām going to eat it at home!
The main obstacle for the thief is the fence. A fence is often the first serious construction on a vacant lot. Itās understandable, because without a fence, even the simplest building materials are likely to disappear, seriously complicating the construction process.
But letās take a look at the numbers: the fence has never stopped burglaries 100%. Criminals decided to back off due to the fence in only 0.002% of cases. However, in 18% of burglaries, the fence was actually the cause.
In other words, out of 10,000 burglaries, in 2 cases (0.02%), the thieves decided to leave when they saw the fence, thinking it would be easier to rob somewhere else. But in 1,800 cases (18%), they thought, “Wow, if the fence is that good, they must be keeping something valuable inside, better steal it!” This means that about one in five times, the fence itself was the cause of the burglaryāeven though that seems strange.
Is this normal?
Personally, if I had to decide, I wouldnāt install a fence on my land. A hedge or a simple symbolic element would be enough to demarcate the space. But where we live, the workshop and the back of the house are right on the edge of the property, and while thatās acceptable in summer, in winter, without a fence, it could practically disappear. The wind blows there incredibly strong, and if it snows, real snow walls can form.
However, there are more aesthetic solutions than the traditional fence. This is what our hero of the day chose:
The couple bought a house in a small holiday village where the community wasnāt really fond of fences made of corrugated iron, concrete blocks, or other imposing fences. However, they still wanted a little privacy, so they decided to define their property with a hedge.
They chose from the following plants: cotoneaster, bladder tree, acacia, juniper, and willow. Cotoneaster doesnāt grow very tall, so it would have taken a lot of time to get a 1.5 to 2-meter hedge. Acacia and juniper were ruled out because of their thorns, too dangerous for children. The bladder tree didnāt convince them.
In the end, they opted for willow. They ordered 3,000 willow cuttings online, which cost about 1,000 euros of their family budget. There were cheaper options, but the cuttings were too small and thin, so they would have taken even longer to grow.
First Spring:
They dug a shallow trench around the land, into which they placed peat. Meanwhile, they soaked the willow branches in an inflatable pool filled with water, adding a significant amount of heteroauxin. The branches stayed in the water for about two days.
After digging the trench and soaking the cuttings, they tied the willow branches in groups of three and planted them in the ground 15 cm apart, leaning at a 60-degree angle (the exact degree wasnāt measured). Half of the branches were fresh, covered in leaves, while the other half was “bare.” The supplier shrugged and said, “Thatās how it isā¦ if you donāt like it, donāt buy them.”
Second Year:
The planting and trench digging took place in the last two weeks of April. This wasnāt a coincidence, as itās in April that the willow takes root 100%. A few weeks later, new leaves appeared, and the hedge started to turn green.
In the first year, the hedge obviously had difficulties: the wind bent and shook it, and it seemed like everything was falling to the ground or being ripped from the soil and scattered around. During the second year, by summer, the vegetation had doubled in quantity, and in winter, the hedge was no longer easily moved by the wind, so it was much healthier.
Third Summer:
By the third summer, it was already clear that the hedge had found its permanent place. But the most important thing was that they had managed to create a natural fence for their land, separating it from the surrounding properties. That was their main goal.
As for the thievesā¦ if they want to enter, nothing will stop them, not even a six-meter high corrugated metal fence with barbed wire.
What do you think of this natural and original fence? Share your thoughts in the comments!
