How To Make A Garden Fence With Chicken Wire? | Easy Fix

If rabbits, squirrels, or a nosy dog keep treating your beds like a buffet, a fence can change the season. Chicken wire is easy to cut and forgiving for first-timers. It still needs a proper build: straight posts, tight mesh, and a bottom edge that doesn’t lift.

This guide walks you through one build that fits most raised beds and in-ground rows. You’ll get a parts list, a clear layout, and fixes for the spots that usually fail.

Need how to make a garden fence with chicken wire? Start here.

Materials And Tool List At A Glance

Match your materials to the animal you’re blocking. Chicken wire is a strong pick for small pests like rabbits when the bottom edge is buried and the mesh is kept tight. If deer are your main issue, plan on extra height above the chicken wire.

Plan The Fence So It Stays Tight

Chicken wire fails when it’s loose. Plan for tension from the start: square corners, a straight run, and a bottom edge that stays pinned. If you’re building to stop rabbits, the University of Georgia notes that a 2-foot chicken wire fence can work when the mesh is bent into an outward apron and buried to stop digging. Their advice is laid out on UGA garden fencing guidance.

Choose A Simple Layout

Keep the fence line straight when you can. Curves make it tough to pull mesh tight, and the slack turns into gaps. If your beds are round, use short straight segments that meet at angles.

Mark The Fence Line And Gate Spot

Lay a string line on the ground and mark corners. Give yourself room to kneel and carry a bucket along the beds. Pick a gate location where the ground is level, since a gate hates a sloped threshold.

Pick A Height That Matches Your Pest

For rabbits, two feet is often enough with a buried apron. For pets that jump, go taller.

How To Make A Garden Fence With Chicken Wire?

Here’s the full build. The work goes faster when you have everything on hand.

Step 1 Set Corner Posts First

Drive or dig each corner post deep enough to stay rigid. Eighteen to twenty-four inches works for many yards. Set deeper in loose soil. Check plumb on two sides with a level, then pack soil hard around the post.

Step 2 Brace Corners Before You Pull Wire

A tight fence tugs on corners. Add a diagonal brace from the corner post to the next post, or build an H-brace on long runs. A brace keeps the corner from leaning once the mesh is tensioned.

Step 3 Set Line Posts On A String

Stretch a string between corners at the height of your top edge. Set line posts every 6–8 feet, keeping each one on the string line. If your soil is soft, tighten spacing to keep the fence steady.

Step 4 Dig A Shallow Trench For The Bottom Apron

Dig a trench about 4–6 inches deep along the fence line. You’re making room to bury the outward skirt so diggers meet wire, not open soil.

Step 5 Unroll The Mesh Without A Fight

Unroll the chicken wire outside the posts. Stand it up against the corner post and attach the top edge first. Wear gloves and long sleeves. Cut ends can be sharp, and they like to snag.

Step 6 Tension The Wire And Keep It Square

For short runs, a helper can pull while you staple. For longer runs, use a stretcher board: screw a scrap 2×4 across the loose wire edge through several mesh openings, then pull the board like a handle. Start fastening at the corner, then work along the run, keeping the top edge aligned with your string line.

Step 7 Fasten Like You Mean It

Staple or clip the wire to every post, not just the corners. On wood posts, place staples every few inches down the post, with extra near the top and bottom. On T-posts, add clips on each post and double up near corners. If the mesh bows between fasteners, add more.

Step 8 Form And Bury The Bottom Apron

Bend the bottom 12 inches of mesh outward, away from the garden, then lay it into the trench. Pin it with a few ground staples, rocks, or short stakes. Backfill soil and tamp it down. WVU Extension gives a similar approach for stopping burrowing by bending and burying chicken wire at the base; their steps are on WVU wildlife pest fencing notes.

Step 9 Add A Top Rail If The Edge Feels Floppy

If the top edge flexes outward when you press on it, add a rail. A simple wood slat screwed to each post works. Conduit also works if you clamp it to posts. A tension wire can work too, tied tight from corner to corner with short wire twists holding the mesh to the line.

Step 10 Build A Gate That Stays Square

Build a light wood frame the size you need, then add a diagonal brace across the frame. Wrap the frame with chicken wire and fold cut ends back on themselves. Hang the gate on a solid post with two hinges, then add a latch that closes snug.

Making A Garden Fence With Chicken Wire For Small Pests

Small pests slip through gaps, not through wire. The details below are the ones that stop the usual break-ins.

Seal The Bottom Edge On Uneven Ground

Walk the fence and look for daylight under the mesh. Fill low spots with soil and tamp it down. If the ground dips a lot, lay a narrow board or pavers along the base outside the fence and pin the mesh apron under it.

Close The Post Gaps

Chicken wire can bow away from posts if fasteners are spaced too far apart. Add staples or clips until the mesh sits flat. On corners, fasten on both faces of the post so the mesh can’t flare.

Keep Climbers From Folding The Top

Squirrels and cats can use the top edge as a perch. A top rail makes that edge stiff. If you don’t want a rail, run a taut wire along the top and tie the mesh to it every foot.

Common Problems And Quick Repairs

If a pest gets in, it’s usually not a mystery. These are the spots to check first.

Sagging Between Posts

Add a post, add a rail, or re-tension the mesh with a stretcher board. Tighten from the corner and work toward the middle, so you don’t trap slack.

Loose Corner Posts

If a corner post wiggles, re-pack the soil, then add bracing. If the post is shallow, reset it deeper. A steady corner makes the whole fence feel tighter.

Rust And Bent Sections

Clip out badly bent wire and patch it with a fresh piece overlapped by a few inches on all sides. Stitch the overlap with short wire ties so the patch doesn’t gap under pressure.

Cost And Build Time By Setup

Most people spend their time on posts and corners, not on the mesh. Use this table to pick a setup that matches your yard and your patience.

Build Day Checklist

Use this order: set and brace corners, set line posts on a string, dig a shallow trench, hang mesh from the top line, tension it, fasten at every post, bend and bury the apron, then hang a braced gate. Print it and keep it nearby.

If you’re checking your work, crouch and scan along the base. Any gap you can fit two fingers under is a gap a rabbit will test. Fix those spots right away, then re-check after heavy rain, since soil can settle.

This build answers “how to make a garden fence with chicken wire?” in a way that holds up past the first week. Keep the mesh tight, keep the base sealed, and your beds get a quieter season.

Send us your feedbackTell us what you thought about this post

⚠Please use a real email you check. If it's fake or mistyped, your message won't reach us and we can't reply — wrong addresses are rejected automatically.

Name *Email *

Your comment *

Quick check — what is …? *

Send feedback