Long lasting, low maintenance and rather beautiful, a cedar fence can be a great solution for an attractive boundary.  The material is available in different sizes and finishes.  It can be installed using horizontal boards or upright boards to suit the garden style.

 

 

 

 

Planed Cedar Fence – East Finchley

This cedar fence in East Finchley has horizontal boards of Western Red Cedar  ( species: Thuja plicata). The boards are planed all round so the fence looks smooth and really good on both sides.  In a small garden the horizontal boards give a feeling of length and width.

 

 

 

Cedar Fence Detail

The posts are all planed for a smooth finish and planed trim boards cover the joints.  Each of the fence boards has a different character with a unique grain pattern and colour.  These ones are clear grade without knots and range in colour from a pale pinkish colour to a richer cedar colour. The wide boards have very small gaps between them for expansion and contraction.  The edges are profiled to close the gaps for privacy so it looks pretty much like a solid fence.

 

 

 

Cedar Fence Maintenance

Very little maintenance is required for Western Red Cedar.  It is a softwood native to the Pacific coast of British Columbia and has been used for thousands of years by the First Nations of Western Canada and North West America.  The picture shows a reconstruction of traditional homes at the UBC Museum of Anthropology.

The cedar is durable and naturally resistant to decay.   It is generally recommended that new wood is protected with a clear breathable sealant.  Thereafter, the wood can be allowed to weather slowly to a silvery grey without any further treatment.  Alternatively, to preserve the cedar colour, an oil would need to be applied annually.