Adding a 36-Inch Rabbit Strip to a 2x4 Welded Wire Garden Fence on T-Posts: 24 Inches Up, a 6-Inch L Buried Outward, and Two Extra Clips per Post

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Run 36-inch poultry netting with 1-inch mesh along the outside of the welded wire, stand 24 inches above the soil, and bury the bottom 12 inches as an L: 6 inches down, then 6 inches out. Clip the netting at each T-post twice and tie it to the welded wire every 12 inches.

How do you rabbit-proof a welded wire fence with 2 x 4 inch mesh?

Add a band of 1-inch poultry netting to the bottom of the fence on the outside. Make it at least 24 inches tall for cottontails, 36 inches for jackrabbits, bury it 6 inches, and bend the buried edge 90 degrees outward. Openings of 2 x 4 inches are too large to stop rabbits, so the band must be separate mesh.

North Dakota State University Extension's rabbit fencing article says the fence needs to be at least 24 inches tall for cottontails and 36 inches for jackrabbits. It says to bury it 6 inches, bend the bottom 90 degrees outward, and keep the mesh 1.0 inch or less.

University of Nebraska-Lincoln's rabbit fencing news release gives the same 2-foot and 3-foot heights. It notes that a fence built onto an existing yard fence needs mesh of 2 by 3 inches to exclude adult rabbits, so a 2 x 4 fence needs the finer band.

Netting and Clip Count for an 88-Foot Garden Fence

This fits the 20 x 26 foot garden with 88 feet of welded wire, 8 steel line posts, and wood corners and gate posts.

Item Cottontails Jackrabbits
Netting width 36 in. 48 in.
Height above soil 24 in. 36 in.
Buried L, down then out 6 in. + 6 in. 6 in. + 6 in.
Netting length 90 ft. 90 ft.
Extra clips, 2 per T-post 16 16
Ties to welded wire, every 12 in. about 88 about 176 (2 rows)

The 90 feet covers 88 feet of fence plus about 1 foot to wrap each gate post.

Materials and Tools

  • T-post clip tool for closing the new clips
  • About 20 galvanized T-post clips, which is 16 plus 4 spares
  • 90 feet of 1-inch poultry netting, 36 inches wide (48 inches for jackrabbits)
  • Hog rings or short pieces of galvanized tie wire for the 12-inch ties
  • A flat spade, fencing pliers, gloves, and safety glasses

Installation Steps

  1. Dig the trench. Cut a trench 6 inches deep and 6 inches wide along the outside of the fence, gate post to gate post.
  2. Fold the L. Bend the netting lengthwise 12 inches from one edge so that edge can lie flat in the trench.
  3. Set the bottom. Stand the netting against the welded wire with the folded edge pointing away from the garden.
  4. Find the clip wire. At each T-post, pick the welded-wire horizontal nearest 22 inches and the one nearest 4 inches.
  5. Clip the top. Lay the netting's top edge along that upper horizontal and wrap one clip around the post, the welded wire, and the netting.
  6. Close it. Turn the clip tight with the clip tool, then repeat at the low clip.
  7. Tie between posts. Fasten the netting's top edge to the welded wire every 12 inches.
  8. Wrap the ends. Bend each end around its gate post and tie it to the welded wire there.
  9. Backfill. Refill the trench over the L and tamp it so the netting cannot lift.

Rabbit Strip Mistakes

  • Netting on the garden side, where rabbits push it away from the welded wire
  • A straight buried edge with no outward L, which a digging rabbit can follow down
  • Gaps at the gate, the one place the strip does not cover
  • Ties every 3 feet or more, which leave bulges a rabbit can squeeze under

The welded-wire fence this strip goes on is in fencing a 20 x 26 foot vegetable garden with one roll of welded wire. A hardware cloth version is in rabbit-proofing a vegetable garden with hardware cloth.

Mesh openings and wire gauges are compared in the hardware cloth mesh size and gauge guide.

The original clip pattern is in clipping 4-foot welded wire to studded T-posts.

FAQ

Do I need the strip on the gate?

Yes. Staple or tie a matching piece of netting to the bottom of the gate and keep the gap under it small.

Can I skip burying it?

You can pin it flat outward instead; Nebraska's guidance allows flaring the bottom outward and fastening it to the ground.

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