If you’re looking for an environmentally friendly, low-cost, and beautiful way to cordon off a section of land or create a lattice tunnel to grow pole beans or vine fruits on, we have a clever idea for you to try.
A woven living fence or tunnel is easy to create with young tree shoot cuttings and a bit of patience. In this article, we’ll teach you how to make these structures, as well as which species are best to use.
Here’s what we’ll discuss:
In This Guide
What is a Living Fence?
It’s self-explanatory: unlike fencing made from metal or timber, a living fence is made of living trees woven together while still young and pliant. This technique is used to create beautiful structures that also have the potential to provide shade if permitted to fill in.
Essentially, the technique involves rooting the cuttings in springtime and then training them by interweaving or crisscrossing them as the season progresses.
If they’re fast-growing species such as willow or bamboo, the fence or tunnel might be completed by autumn. However, it may take a few years for slower-growing species to mature into their full form.
As these structures mature, the tree cuttings thicken and tighten, creating an effective barrier. Although they may seem flimsy their first year, they can become properly dense and defensive in just a few more seasons.
Benefits of Living Tunnels and Fences
A living tunnel is a multi-purpose option for providing daytime cover for hens, guinea fowl, and other small livestock animals. The woven cuttings create a barrier that will fill in with leaves as the plants mature.
This prevents flying predators from simply swooping down and grabbing vulnerable animals.
Another smart use for these tunnels is to provide small children with a sheltered play area on hot days. They can still play outside in the fresh air, but the shaded structure will keep them from burning.
You don’t have to create one of these structures to protect hens or offer structures for climbing edible species to grow over. They’re also great for combating erosion, as the roots get deeper every year, they’ll become more interwoven and prevent soil loss.
In fact, people in some areas specifically create living fences from willow or alder to protect river and creek banks from eroding.
If you’re creating a tunnel or dome to grow pole beans or similar over, then you’ll need to snip off the trees’ leaves as they appear so they don’t interfere with the edibles’ growth, nor risk pathogens or predatory insects being spread around.
Which Tree Species are Best for This Project?
Although you could make a living fence, tunnel, or dome out of many different shoots and cuttings, the five species mentioned below are some of the best options.
They grow quickly, are fairly pliant to work with and get sturdier as they age. Whenever possible, try to choose indigenous species local to your area, as these will thrive best on your property.
If that isn’t an option, then choose species that are ideal for your zone, soil, and sunfall.
1. Willow (Salix spp.)
Willow is one of the most popular options for a living fence or tunnel. The young shoots are incredibly pliant; they grow quickly and produce beautiful, fragrant leaves all summer long.
They grow between three and ten feet annually, depending on the species, making them ideal for any type of structure you’re aiming to create. Weeping willow is one of the fastest-growing species, for example, and will shoot up more quickly if it’s close to a water source.
These trees thrive in well-draining, damp soil but aren’t terribly fussy as long as they get regular water and full sun. If you do plant them in a riparian area near a riverbank, stream, creek, or pond, they’ll help combat erosion and offer nesting options for water birds.
Please note that willow roots can spread out quite widely and deeply, so if you’re using this tree’s cuttings for your fence, ensure that it’s at least 30-40 feet away from any structures, pipes, drains, or septic systems.
2. Hazel (Corylus spp.)
Hazel cuttings are known for their flexibility while young and durability as they mature. This makes them rather ideal for a living fence. Additionally, since they can grow to 20-40 feet in height, They’re just as perfect to train into a tunnel or dome shape.
The downside to hazel trees is that they grow a bit more slowly than other species on this list—about 15 inches a year.
These trees love rich, well-draining soil with a pH of 5.0-7.0, although they can grow in a variety of soils provided they aren’t wet. Hazels are susceptible to root rot if their soil doesn’t drain properly. Plant in full sun for plentiful nuts or in partial shade for more foliage.
A hazel living fence has an additional benefit: food. If you’re really focused on multi-purpose plants around your homestead, then hazel trees are absolutely perfect for you.
As they grow, they’ll develop those delicious hazelnuts that many of us know and love. These trees require full sun to bear fruit and should be planted in well-draining, moderately rich soil.
3. Honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.)
If you’re aiming for aesthetics and scent rather than sturdy fencing or trellising for climbing edibles, then consider honeysuckle shoots as an option.
Since these are shrubs rather than trees (only growing to about six-14 feet, depending on the cultivar), they’re great for a living fence but not a tunnel or dome. Their flowers smell absolutely exquisite and attract tons of bees, hummingbirds, and other pollinators.
Additionally, if you get a fruiting species such as haskap (L. caerulea), you’ll also be able to harvest loads of delicious honeyberries every year. Avoid those species that are classified as invasive in your area.
These plants like well-draining, nourishing soil between acidic and neutral, and at least six hours of direct sunlight daily.
4. Bamboo (Bambusoideae)
If your goal is to create a living fence or tunnel as quickly as possible, then bamboo should be at the top of your list. Technically, it isn’t a tree, but a fast-growing, ridiculously tall member of the grass family.
It can also grow up to three feet per day, which means that your woven structure could hypothetically be completed within a week or two.
These plants thrive best in loamy, slightly acidic soil, and can handle full sun to partial shade. Additionally, don’t think that you need to be in a tropical or otherwise hot region to use bamboo for your living hedge.
There are many cold-hardy species from Tibet and Northern Japan that can thrive in cold climates like Northern Europe, Canada, and the northernmost USA.
Bamboo takes a lot of maintenance and attention to control and contain. Since it grows so quickly, it will need to be manipulated and cut back constantly to keep it from spreading out all over your garden.
In fact, you should check your local bylaws before planting bamboo, as it’s considered invasive in some areas and may even be illegal to plant where you are. If you’re planting “runner” species, you’ll also need to put down a protective barrier around the area so they don’t take over the entire area.
5. Alder (Alnus spp.)
If you’re aiming to create a living fence in a damp area, such as along a riverbank or around a marsh or wetland, you can try using alder trees.
These birch cousins are also in the Betulaceae family, and have long been found in watery, marshy areas. Whereas the other trees on this list would get root rot if they get “wet feet”, alders will thrive in moist conditions, as long as the soil is sufficiently well-draining.
Ideally, this soil will be quite sandy or loamy, with a pH between 5.0 and 7.5. Those planted in full sun will grow very vigorously and bush out well, while those in partial shade will be slower-growing and more woody.
Alder is one of the best species for coppicing. When an alder trunk is cut, several young shoots (or suckers) all spring up from the cut, growing straight and all.
These are the cuttings you’ll want to use for your living fence. Harvest these when they’re about finger-sized in diameter to use as your building and weaving material.
If anyone in your family is allergic to birch pollen, they’ll likely be allergic to alder, too.
How to Build Your Living Fence or Tunnel
Building a living fence, tunnel, or hoop is astonishingly easy. It just takes a few simple tools and steps, and you’re ready.
What You’ll Need:
- Measuring tape
- Branch cutters
- A hatchet or sharp knife
- Rooting medium
- Gardening tape
- Snips or garden shears
- Wooden Popsicle sticks or half-inch dowel rod
- Alcohol wipes
Step 1: Plan Your Living Fence
This is the most important part, as you may need to plan significantly in advance, depending on the species you’ll be using.
Willow is easy to harvest as soon as suckers appear in springtime, whereas you may need to coppice several few alder trees to create enough suckers to work with the following year.
Measure the area where you intend to build your fence or tunnel, and then divide that into one-foot intervals.
You’ll want to plant your cuttings close together in order for them to grow into a dense structure, so this will give you an idea of how many cuttings you’ll need.
For example, since one yard equals three feet, you’ll need 90 cuttings for a 30-yard-long fence (plus a few extras in case any snap while you’re working).
Place markers all along your planned structure area, using popsicle sticks at each interval. If you’re creating a tunnel rather than a fence, then determine how wide you’d like it, and place markers directly across from each other at each interval to ensure symmetry.
Alternatively, if you’d rather work by eye, simply poke holes in the soil with a dowel rod ahead of time
Step 2: Collect the Shoots
Refer back to your notes to determine how many cuttings you’ll need for your living fence, tunnel, or other structure. Once you’ve calculated that, add an extra 10-20 cuttings because some will inevitably disappoint you while you’re working.
If there aren’t enough young shoots on your own property to harvest, you may need to source them from a local tree farm. Contact an arborist in the area to find out availability. If you’re using bamboo, you may need to purchase yours from a nursery or garden center.
In situations where you’ll be collecting young shoots in the wild, please first ensure that it’s legal for you to do so in your area, so you don’t end up with a hefty fine from the forestry department. Once you have the all-clear, please harvest responsibly.
Don’t take more than a few shoots from any one branch or base, and sterilize your branch cutters or snips with alcohol wipes when you move from one tree to another. This will prevent you from potentially spreading any diseases between trees.
Step 3: Prep and Plant Your Cuttings
Once you’ve collected enough shoots, it’s time to prep them. Do this close to your planting rather than further away so you don’t have to carry armloads of cuttings far away.
Sterilize your knife or hatchet and use it to cut the bottom of each shoot at an angle. This will help them to draw in water and nutrients as they establish their root system. Then, remove one of the popsicle sticks you inserted into the soil as a marker.
Dip the cut end of one of your shoots into the rooting formula and push it into the soil at a 45-degree angle, about six to eight inches deep.
Next, move on to the next hole and plant this one vertically. The one after that will repeat the initial process, planting the shoot to the same depth, but at an opposite angle so it faces the original one.
Step 4: In the Sunshine, Bind Them
Use gardening tape or twine to bind the three shoots together where they meet. It’s more than okay if they’re quite long: wherever shoots cross one another over a central vertical one, bind them together.
This will create a diamond pattern you can continue as the shoots grow. Simply keep binding them together in this manner, pruning or bending and winding them as they mature.
Ensure that you alternate the bindings as the structure grows. For example, if the initial bindings had the left-leaning shoots bound in front of the verticals, the next level up should have them in the back (see the first photo in this article as an example). This creates the tension necessary to keep the structure upright as it grows.
Alternatively, you can omit the vertical central posts and just create a diamond pattern with alternating left- and right-planted shoots.
Check them periodically to ensure that the tape or twine isn’t cutting into the shoots, potentially damaging the plants. You may need to cut it off and re-bind periodically, especially for very fast-growing species like bamboo.
Step 5: Care and Maintenance
For the first couple of years, it’s a good idea to spread mulch around the base of these shoots to maintain moisture and protect the roots as they establish.
Water regularly as per the species’ different needs, and feel free to feed them a fertilizer that’s rich in phosphorous, as this will encourage root development.
In addition to checking the tape regularly, be sure to see if any shoots need to be bent or pruned to maintain the structure’s shape.
For example, Willow and alder slips can be twisted around and woven back through the structure to fill in gaps or shape borders. In contrast, you may have to cut your bamboo regularly so it doesn’t grow out of control.
You can remove the tape or twine once the structure has matured enough that the shoots are sturdy and firm. They’ve now grown into position and won’t try to unwind themselves.
As new branches and shoots appear, you can twist and weave them around the established diamond lattice to reinforce areas and make the structure more dense. If you’ve created a fence rather than a tunnel and find it’s leaning over a bit, you may need to brace it with poles at either end.
Keep an eye on your living fence or tunnel to ensure that your plants are thriving well, and aren’t suffering from any kind of insect or fungal damage.
If you do find any, treat them immediately so you don’t lose your entire structure. Most importantly, enjoy your creation! This beautiful piece will only get more lovely as time goes by.