Make Your Garden Work For You: Install Plants Not Bars
Penny J. Leisch

Enhance your home and secure your property without adding bars and other unsightly devices. Properly planned plantings keep animals and children in, as well as keeping intruders out, while providing decorative flowering shrubbery and privacy. Europeans and Americans used bramble bushes and cactus spines for fencing long before modern technology made manufactured fencing practical. One obvious advantage is that there is less risk of entry and exit problems in the event of a fire or storm emergency. So let's talk about the easiest way to implement environmentally friendly security.

First, determine which sturdy, thorny plants grow well in your area. This is one time that the thorniest plants you can find are your best choice. Large old-fashioned rambling roses, climbing roses, and bougainvillea, grow in almost all regions. The varieties that grow well may vary according to the weather and soil in your area. However, once you locate suitable plants, it's simple to refine your choice by selecting plants with evergreen foliage or blossoms in your favorite color. Trees with thorns offer another practical option for shading second story windows without providing access to unwanted people and animals.

If you have problems locating plants that meet these requirements, call your local university, county farm bureau, or agricultural extension office. Most towns have some form of governmental agency that is very knowledgeable about plants. Some even have a Master Gardener's catalog online for public use. If not, ask for one at your local library. The catalog will provide information about temperature tolerance, growth rate, feeding and soil requirements, final size, color, and how much maintenance to expect. Another great source for plant research is the Sunset Garden series, which now includes the Sunset National Garden Book.

Next, blend your security plants into your overall landscaping plans and be prepared to patiently groom the green security guards. They will take time to grow into an effective deterrent. However, once grown a thorny plant is a formidable barrier. Just imagine hopping a fence only to be impaled by thorns an inch long or trying to climb a tree in the dark and finding yourself in the midst of thorns that cling like Velcro. You won't have to put up no trespassing signs to make your point once the plants mature.

As your plants grow, be sure to provide proper support that will encourage strong stems and sturdy trunks or branches. Initially, this may mean slowing the upward growth by pruning to encourage thicker supporting stalks before allowing the plant to grow to full height. If your plan is to keep intruders out, line the inside of your fence with appropriate plants and place plants that will grow to roof height directly in front of windows. If your plan is to keep animals and people out without exposing children and pets to the prickly hazards, locate the sticky shrubs on the outside of your fence. Should that arrangement be impractical, install a smaller garden fence near the bushes to provide a decorative barrier that will also prevent accidental contact due to falls or roughhousing.

Do not plant plants far enough out from the structure that you inadvertently provide an area for an intruder to hide between the plants and the building. Also, remember that gates and other access areas still need security hardware and mechanical deterrents, such as a concrete footing under gates, deadbolts on doors, and sturdy locks on storage areas.

With proper planning and patience, you will have an inconspicuous security system that enhances your safety and the appearance of your home.

Plant Resources:

National Gardening Association
http://www.garden.org

Sunset Garden Gateway http://www.sunset.com/sunset/Premium/gardengateway.html

Penny has published over thirty articles, technical manuals, and numerous photos, in addition to teaching writing and photography in Arizona and online. Her creative nonfiction essay, Like A Rock, will appear in Cup of Comfort for Mothers & Sons, due out in April 2005. http://www.pennyspensandpics.com