How about chain link with vertical slats woven vertically every so often, I thought of this for myself at one time but I envisioned mine with barbwire running along the top. I lucked out, the neighbor moved on to annoy someone else :).

Annette

I don't have much to 'offer' that I use directly. But in the winter 2009 I took a Landscape Design course through the University of Guelph's distance education program. In the final assignment for the course, we had to provide quite detailed specifications for the materials for the design. I found the fencing at the link below. It's aluminum, not iron but looks like iron (so it wouldn't rust...) I have no idea what it costs (we didn't have to go that far for the course) but I like the designs. If I had a fencing need like yours I'd certainly look into what something like the Jerith fences cost. I've seen them used around here in garden centers to fence off and secure areas where they store things outdoors. So I think they would meet a lot of your needs - but have no idea whether the price would be out of your ballpark or not. I'm sure they're not cheap though!

Here is a link that might be useful: Jerith fences

You could do a combination with wood fences and trellis.. Especially grid style trellises alternating with wood fences or shorter fences with trellises on top.. This provides privacy and yet allow light through. The fences can have overlapping boards allowing air and water to come thru.

Barring these samples I would go with aluminum fencing however that may make you feel exposed.

The thing with gushing water -- something I had a problem with my neighbors yards. I considered setting in a dry river bed to slow down the gushing water and control it's path. In the end I hired my landscaper to dig in a drainage pipe but topped it with river stones so it looked very pretty.

Here is a link that might be useful: fencing samples

I would personally prefer not to use chain link. I personally do not care for the appearance and it's not been proven here to be sturdy enough! My neighbors dog just digs under it and then her neighbors have taken baseball bats to them to crumble them and then climb over them.
Yes, that is sadly true.
I was considering the ornamental metal however the nice fence man I spoke to today said he gets very concerned about them. He said that tree limbs often totally crush them, they are lighter than one might think...and they get expensive to replace. He also felt they were "overkill" for our neighborhood and suggested I find something I guess more rustic. I can understand this and this is the kind of response I am looking for, a smart suggestion. I still need something water can flow through.
I wish we had the "old" google back, it used to be so much more helpful when searching for these things!!

Then there's bamboo fencing, supposed to be quite strong, one of our neighbors has this.

Annette

Here is a link that might be useful: Bamboo fencing

I did a little searching and came up with a few that some variation of might work if you are able to build the fence yourself?
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I would think any of these could be built to your height needs. Also if you used pipe, you could put the pipe through drilled holes in the wood and then pound the pipe directly into the ground aways which would give support as well as keep critters from digging under? Also would allow water to pass through I would think?

Thanks for loving our fence GGG! Wish it would work for you too! Hey, you could always put razor wire across the top!? :-)

I thought briefly of copper pipes/fence too - The fence and gate at the top of our north alley is made with copper pipes. The drawback of that is that copper is soft and easily bent. In the neighbourhood conditions you describe, a copper fence wouldn't be very secure. Maybe you could substitute iron pipes, but then you'd need to deal with the rust issue. A very tricky problem you have there.... Annette's idea of bamboo might be the best compromise. The thicker widths of bamboo are very sturdy - although expensive and hard to find here... But you could substitute them into a design that would otherwise use metal poles.

Well, I don't know if this will work on not...but in your situation, I'd put metal fence posts in and a wire fence...much like a farm fence. Then, I'd grow hardy shrub roses or some other sharp and thorny plant all along the fence...maybe even through the fence.

If your 'brigand' neighbors can't stay out, until the roses grow tall enough to do some good...can you run a few electric wires, above the fence?

Of course, I don't know if any shrubs would do well with all that water, but that's what I would do :)

GGG

In our neighborhood we have 3 fencing options. One is gorgeous and would fit your needs. I cannot find a picture of it done in wood but this aluminum fence is close
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You can add more of the small pieces to increase sunlight and you can decide how far down the bottom of the fence goes.

If it wasn't pitch dark and pouring rain I would try to find a person here who has this fencing. Most of them opted for two small boards between each wide board. Its beautiful.

Good luck in whatever you decide.

Ronda

Mary Lu did pretty good! HA!
The nicest fence man ever came today, and he will gladly do custom work and do it to my satisfaction. He works by using Kudzu website for his references and has 100% satisfaction of a LOT of users. I'm so pleased (although still getting quotes). We decided on a slightly spaced privacy fence, so that my neighbors dog can see me still (we are buddies) and so that sun can get through. Plants will eventually cover it but still be able to get light from the back.
The front is plain french gothic pickets to match the purple fence.
The fence across the middle of the property will be similar to the copper fence Mary Lu found, but with EMT pipe (so much cheaper). It will, indeed be laced with "pricklies" either climbing roses or blackberries. However we decided to put up that fencing and gates later on, after the heavy drainage correction work we need done is complete (so machines don't wreck it).
Today I also finally found a landscape guy who will guide me to find a drainage specialist as he said our problems are far too large for a landscaper. He can come in and do work after they are done that stuff. He is also a rainwater catchment specialist and so kind, and informative.
Sometimes I really think my prayers over this have been answered and then of course, that's just my own thinking. Today, it may have really happened. I can't wait until next week to find out!!

It sounds like you were finally able to find someone who knows about and understands the drainage problems that you have. There is indeed light at the end of the tunnel. So happy for you. Keeping my fingers crossed. Please keep us posted.

Also glad that I could help you with your vision for fencing and that you were able to find someone who can build what you want. Looking forward to the day you can post pictures of your finished fencing!

one thing you said caught my attention.. Your neighbor's dogs will dig a hole beneath the fence??

Before you decide on the fence, you might consider how you'd deter these dogs from digging under otherwise that fence would be ineffective.. Sorry you just reminded me of a visit to a friend's house and his neighbor had a terribly scary and dangerous rottwiler (spelling?)and this thing dug holes all through that side of the fence.

I found someone who can't do the work but "gets it" - yes Mary Lu. I think part of the problem is that I hand no resources to find someone who can manage the scale of this project before, and those who I contacted desperately want the work in a poor economy so they bid. However, bids were pretty astonomical.
Ianna, yes, Buddy digs under fencing. He will not be able to dig under most of the new fencing, it will sit directly on our wood retaining wall in many places. Where it does not, We are banging rebar into the ground at "head" size intervals and securing them to the bottom of the fence with U nails. I've already instructed the fence dude that he MUST please tie in my neighbors fences to ours, if she allows us to take down her metal fence (that is not very good anyway). This causes problems as we won't have fencing for the dog for a few days...he can not be tied, he refuses to even wear a collar!

Obviously I don't know what's available and what would look best in your area. But if the neighbourhood is a bit 'rough' I would be concerned at using either aluminium or copper. Over here, because they are high value metals, they sometimes get stolen for scrap, as is roofing lead, copper wiring and even bronze statuary. This really becomes a problem in times of high unemployment when people are looking to make some cash.

Here is a link that might be useful: Metal theft

copper would be far too expensive here in North America Aluminum is cheaper and more abundant.

GGG if fencing the entire lot is far too large a job and expensive, why don't you consider fencing a smaller plot size and then use trees or hedging materials to 'fence' off the rest of the property?

Anyway, one thing I know about any fence, it's useless if you have neighborhood kids wanting to climb over it, especially if there are nearby trees that could work as ladders. The best deterrents are thorny shrubs. And they don't need to be all to block off sunlight. just wide and dense enough.
non traditional fencing materials can be just about anything from yews to rose bushes. Obviously such plants must be hardy and of minimal care. If not roses, how about hollies? Take example from P. Allen Smiths way of creating his new garden home.. The exciting thing with these forms is that you won't end up with one monotonous fencing. You can have shrubs, combined with trellises. Shrubs also need not be only one kind too. It can be combinations of all kinds of plants.

We were planning on using quite a few thorny shrubs around the perimiter, along with climbing roses. However, Ianna, I think you might be right. It may be better to use SOME (not all) areas of the middle ground fence as thorny shrubs. Why not all? They block light,and we do need drive through gates. The other problem will be that part of them needs to go on the driveway. It maybe better to simply go with more expensive iron there. In the long run, the "middle" area fencing will be the last to be errected anyway. However in our neighborhood, if we make ANY improvements at all to a yard and put out yard furniture you simply must fence as much as you can to block views or the furniture will be GONE. I know that sounds terrible to some of you, but we live in the inner city in a neighborhood that is often considered "transitional" but really it is just comprised of all kinds of folks, some are super, some not-so-much.
I will eventually want to use the shrubs to hide the fencing but I need it in the in-term as it is, much cheaper than buying 100 full-size thorny shrubs and roses and having them planted so that we could use the patio!

GGG glad you think so.. I was thinking that you might be able to utilize ornamental grasses as well.. the miscanthus types because they can grow dense, they have sharp blades and they produce an airy feel.. Grasses may not immediately look like a deterrent but if planted in an overlaping way it can work as a living fence...

Ianna, I need something that also blocks views all all times of the year. We plan to be growing food behind this area, and I'm trying to keep scavengers out. So far they've been pretty good, I think this could become and issue where I live. I also want to continue working on some structural additions to the garden that need building, and frankly, after dealing thus far with this city, I would rather do them covertly behind large leafy shrubs...

Woodyoak, thanks for the Jerith link! I ordered one of their brochures.

We bought a decorative metal fence for the veggie garden from Lowe's two years ago. About two-thirds of the panels started rusting within the first 3 months. Will eventually need to replace the whole thing and I'm pretty sure aluminum is the way to go.

Here is a link that might be useful: Garden Zone fencing (pretty, but doesn't last)

GGG - I guess its not your cup of tea but for the sake of information, Miscanthus sinensis is a huge tall very dense ornamental grass. I have one (5 ft) in the front yard. I know you won't use it but it is effective in blocking views. I thought it would be cheap alternative to thorny shrubs.

Here is a link that might be useful: miscanthus

5' tall isn't tall enough, and they need to be cut back to the ground around now, and don't leaf out again here for another month or so...so that leaves me nekkid time. Especially for full screening. The shrubs would meet up better with drive through gates we'll eventually have to put in place. I like the grass, I'd just use it somewhere else. I had been planning on using them near where some water occasionally comes in the yard as the city will not allow boulders to slow the water down (too close to tree roots that the boulders would smother). The miscanthus (or other grasses) will do the trick!

This fence is pretty neato

Here is a link that might be useful: this fence is really cool

In one section of the garden I use pipes with fencing attached so I can grow climbing roses. The second pic shows the type of fence that I use, and the link below will show you the fittings. This fence is very easy to erect. All you need is a screw driver for the fittings. The climbing roses will keep out everything. I guarantee it. Especially if you plant a hedge of “Antique 89”. This rose has thick stiff stems that grow straight up. This fence has been up for 20 years with no signs of rust. Each pole goes down about 2 feet into the ground and their spaced about 6 feet apart.

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Here is a link that might be useful: Pipe fittings that I use to erect fence

Herb Lady, that is really beautiful! It's a living fence!! I also use metal pipe fittings, I had originally attached them to my short fence (but they eventually tear it up with the weight of roses so I'm taking it off :(... How does this stand up in high winds? We get hurricane force winds and tornado winds here several times a year so I need to be able to account for them. This is, however exactly what I want on my deck from the ground upwards to the top of the house for a privacy screen! I've not seen those connectors before, and that would be exactly what I need, and I was planning to make a trellis out of galvanized pipe for that (I already have the pipes!).
Our land is not flat (which is why I need taller fencing and barriers in some areas for screening) and my neighbors are all up higher than I am, so I'm looking for ways to gain privacy without blocking out too much sun.
Thanks! I love your idea!

Confederate jasmine is evergreen. Would take a few years to cover the fence.

GGG-
Promise.. this is the last I will say about the miscanthus! LOL.

You shouldn't cut a miscanthus down to the ground. leave it for the winter because it's really a spectacular 4 season plant and an effective screening plant. And the miscanthus I have which is 5 feet, is one of the dwarf forms. The other goes upwards of 6 ft -8 feet. It's like bamboo but not invasive. It has reed like qualities and airy seed heads. Just for information sake...

I think you are right about the grass being okay for slowing down water. Although I've no idea how it will do in sitting water.

I like the galvanized pipe with the concrete reinforcing wire that herblady uses. You can spray paint the galvanized pipe with shiny dark green, flat dark brown, or black spray paint to blend it in. The nicest thing about it is that you can sink your posts really deep and the reinforcing wire will let water through, but serves as a good trellis for vines. It is not the end of the world if someone cuts a hole in it, because it can be patched.

Good luck with the drainage project. It sounds like a big job.
Renee