Garden near road

[chris]

One of my gardens is near a road - not that busy, only traffic down it is for people that live down that road. No fence surround it at the mo, thinking of having this small garden (it's to the side of our house) as an overflow type place for testing growing/stuff I don't expect to work well, etc - as it's only small, I guess about 2m^2.

There's shrubs as a natural break between the pavement, and this garden... wondering if it's recommended to put some 6 ft fence panels up there - as I'm a bit concerned that fumes from exhausts may spill over into it?

Planning later on having chickens in this garden, once the little one is older, so wondering also if these would better be sheilded from such fumes? I'll try to post a pic if my description isn't clear.

[Alice]

I think you better post the pic Chrismarks as I feel a bit lost.

[rustylady]

Hi Chrismarks, if there's only occasional traffic then plants (or veggies) shouldn't be a problem. Hopefully you wash your veg before you eat it anyway. Chickens will need a secure enclosure, so you will need at least wire mesh (shrubs just won't do it). BTW, can you please add your location to your profile??

[Two_Sheds]

we breathe exhaust fumes every day - don't worry about your veg

[Pumpkin Becki]

My house is right at the crossroads of a main A road and a B road. Lorries, cars, motorbikes, horseboxes and tractors hammer up and down all day everyday. We've got a very decrepid 6" panel fence covered in ivy along the side boundary of the back garden with the A road. We grew flowers, veg, fruit and herbs there this year and it was all perfectly fine. Hedges are remarkably good filters for a lot of pollution, so long as you wash your produce first, it should be perfectly fine.

I'll be keeping chooks in my garden too next year. They'll be completely enclosed in a wire run (unless we are out in the garden with them) to protect them from preditors. A hedge will help as a wind/weather break, but as rustylady says, it won't help them in any other way.

[Bigmallly]

We've got a very decrepid 6" panel fence covered in ivy

Hi Becki,
I guess it's that decrepid it started off at 6'...............

[Pumpkin Becki]

Hi Becki,
I guess it's that decrepid it started off at 6'...............

Doops...Never did understand that Imperial business BM, I'm a metric girl

Yes, it's a six foot tall fence (see the piccies in my album for proof)

[Bigmallly]

So it is Becki, all 1.8mts of it..........love the garden by the way.

[Pumpkin Becki]

So it is Becki, all 1.8mts of it..........love the garden by the way.

Thank you very much . Now if we could just finish the house before christmas...

[chriscross1966]

Modern legislation on emissions and getting rid of the lead has pretty much stopped vehicle exhausts being the nasties they once were..... several of the smaller japanese cars now have exhaust scrubbers so good that in most cities the air that comes out of the exhaust is actually better than the air that went into the air filter in terms of particulates etc, it's just rather low on oxygen :-). A hedge will filter an awful lot of what little is there.... last year I made two batches of sloe gin, one frmo sloes growing by a fairly busy road in Oxford and one from sloes growing in a nature reserve.... couldn't tell the difference and all they got was a quick wash.....

chrisc