No man's land between fences, what would you do?

My neighbour's, Jethro and EllyMae, put up a wooden fence running parallel to mine but with some inches between the two. I believe it will be a magnet for weeds. I've taken out the no longer needed privacy slats from my fence. The gap gets wider as it nears the end. Almost 8 or 10 inches.

What would you do?

 

I dont think you can do much more than just keep an eye on the gap and use weedkiller on anything that comes up in that area.

 

I’d use your wire fence as a sort of trellis and grow pretty climbers over it. Maybe a Clematis montana to really cover the whole area.

 

Yes, something climbing might help. They've cut off about 4 hours of sun so many things may not flourish. :(

 

That's what evergreen Loniceras are for Do you have them up there?

 

@CanadianLori when we lived in Belgium and had regular winter temps of -20C or more for a few weeks every winter with no protective snow I grew clematis viticella bought from a pair of brothers who ran a clematis nursery and helpfully indicated hardiness on their labels. Most of this group will do well in semi-shade or full sun and all can be pruned back in late winter/early spring (when you snow melts) and will grow again and cover your fence.

Have a look at this list for some idea of colour, flower size and plant size -
Clematis viticella group ... www.clematis.be...

 

I don’t know what lonericas is. I'll have to do some homework.

I have a really hard time getting clematis to survive in spite of piling lots over their roots to keep their feet cool.

More homework!

 

Lonicera Henryi (Honeysuckle)
You're welcome !

 

I thought you was worried about weeds taking over in the gap where you cant get to take them out.

 

You need to choose your clematis wisely @CanadianLori. Pruning group 3, hardy and vigorous will do it so iticellas are perfect. The annual spring prune will enable you to get at any weeds that grow but the vigour of the clematis will cut light to the weeds and reduce their capacity to invade.

Clematis are hungry, thirsty plants so make sure you improve your soil with plenty of compost and well-rotted manure plus a generous handful of rose or tomato fertiliser every spring and they'll thrive.

 

Yes, it was the new weed zone that I was worried about because there is no way I could get a grip on them through the fence to pull them out. I do like all of the plant suggestions too.

 

Spray Weed Killer it works wonders.

 

At least with the mesh you can see if anything weedy starts to get too big. I've just noticed a 6 ft tall ash that has seeded between the fences of my neighbour and me! Fortunately my neighbours are lovely so don't mind what I do to kill it. But I'll be spraying regularly in the gap from now on.

 

I think the evergreen Loniceras [honeysuckles] need more sun than the deciduous ones. I've found that here, so I've binned a couple which couldn't manage more shade. The one which gets decent hours of sun is romping away.
Some clematis should work @CanadianLori, depending on what the soil is like, and exactly where you plant. Perhaps the early ones like alpinas, macropetalas or koreanas might be better if there's not much room and they also prefer drier, more restricted conditions. Montanas cover big areas and also prefer a slightly drier position. It's why they do best right up against house walls here where I am. I have the problem with the larger flowered ones that they get too wet, and then fail,so I now grow them in raised beds or containers. I can't keep koreanas alive though, even in the driest spots.
I have an alpina in a tiny, narrow raised bed - never been watered, and doesn't get much sun until later, even through summer. I had to cut it back earlier this year to do some fence maintenance, and it's grown like mad. I've cut it back hard before, but I think the sunnier/hotter weather this spring and summer here has also helped it. Mine is basically west facing, but in a corner with a fence, and a garage, hence the shade.
It'll largely depend on how wet and cold it is for you, rather than dry and cold, or hot and dry, as well as the aspect. Keeping weeds at bay, while anything you plant then grows, will be the trickiest part. Maybe a thick layer of gravel to help initially?

 

A chance to grab those inches of land. Take your fence down and pretend it's always been your land a joke
Can't imagine anything other than chopping down anything growing with scissors that can get in mesh gaps. Or growing something tall, climbing so that nothing grows in the darkness behind.