Hi everyone. IM building a fence around my property and on my sides it borders my neighbors property, about 1 foot off the property line. There is a pitch starting at the back of our property going towards the front which runs parallel to the fence line, which is important because I tried swaling on contour to slow the crazy amount of water that gets washed down on us from the field behind us. Originally I had put mulch on the property lines, but heavier rains wash the mulch right into my neighbors yard. So Im looking for any ideas on how to keep the fence line tidy in between the posts as well as the property line itself. Mulch has not worked, and I would really like to limit the amount of mowing and weedwhacking around the fence.

Thanks!

goat, guinue pigs, fire, ashes.

Was thinking of a small goat, I only have 1/3 of an acre. But, that would only help out with in between the posts, it wouldnt take care of the property line since my neighbors wont appreciate a goat in their yard. although we are out of the town area, its still a residential neighborhood.

Not sure where you are going with fire/ash. The fence is wood........

I am interested in the answers to this question as well. I would like to put up some fencing for keeping a dog in (our last dear obedient dog was killed on the highway even though he knew not to leave without us. He mistakenly followed my mother down the road on her bike and was hit)

Deer pressure is also a major concern from every direction. I do things to mitigate the deer, but the population is so large that I think only a fence will really keep them out. I know they are part of the ecological system but i is a system way out of balance and our farm is too small to solve that.

Putting up a fence is building an edge, however, and so I haven't done it yet because keeping it clear will be such a challenge. Invasives are a big big issue here. I have had the thought of planting things along the fence, but even that will need a lot of attention, and I don't have time for more work. It makes the fence seem like not a permaculture solution since it won't take care of itself.

Bricks, rocks, urbanite--hard surface wide enough a mower can run along and self-edge. Even if you don't want to mow at all, that gives enough edge that the fence looks good even with tall stuff around it.

It will not be cheap, but doable on that size of lot.

Good ideas, keep em coming!

There is probably a dense groundcover you could plant around it. My area is particularly tricky because of the invasives, but in a normal spot I think rugosa rose might work in my climate. Plus rose hips are yummy and nutritious, and deer and predators don't like the prickles.

Hair sheep...low maintenance, easy to keep, fattens easily on grass and will keep your lawn and edgings looking like you have a lawn guy tending to it. Why waste time cutting grass when you can turn it into meat?

I would say rocks. Any size or shape would work but i would think golf ball size would be idea. You could do 3/4 minus or 3/4 wash rock. Or if you have access to larger rocks that might help with runoff as well.

Sheep etc, arent in the near plans at this point. They would only be able to get the inside of the fence anyway which isnt the area Im not as concerned about.

Ive tried rocks as well and the big ones work somewhat but they are hard to mow around. Small rocks tend to get kicked over into the neighbors lawn and hit by the mower, same with mulch. The slope goes from back to front of the property and runs inside to out so all water pushes away from my house. Ive swaled in alot of areas which has helped, but it doesnt help the weed area on the fence itself and the neighbors side. I was thinking that if I d made a berm of some kind to keep water pushing towards my property and not outward , the mulch might not wash away. The other factor is cost for sure. I have over 300 ft of fence line to address.

I'm thinking some tough low plants along the fenceline might help.

I have similar issues with rainwater runoff from neighbouring paddocks and grass growing up through fences. I'm currently propagating comfrey and lemongrass to plant densely along the fencelines. They'll grow tightly together and hopefully suppress grass, and should also handle the water deluge (comfrey has very deep roots). You can also trim both for lots of mulch.