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Hurdle fencing is the oldest fencing in Britain and still one of the best. Panels of hazel or willow rods, cut from coppiced woodland and woven by hand, tied to a line of posts. No concrete gravel boards, no slotted concrete posts, no orange-brown pressure-treated timber. Just woven wood that filters wind, softens a boundary and looks better every year it stands.
We make it in six heights from 1ft to 6ft, every panel 6ft wide, in hazel and willow. This page covers what hurdle fencing is, how it differs from ordinary fence panels, what it costs and how to put it up.
What makes it hurdle fencing
Three things, and they all follow from the same fact — it is woven rather than sawn.
It is porous. A woven panel lets air through. That matters more than people expect: solid fencing behaves like a sail, catches the full force of a gust and transfers it into the post at ground level. A hurdle bleeds wind through the weave instead, which is why hurdle fencing survives on exposed sites that flatten close-board panels, and why growers have used it as a windbreak for centuries.
It ties to the face of a post, not into a slot. Ordinary panel fencing drops into channels, so the run has to be straight and level or you start cutting. Hurdles are simply lashed to the outside of a round post, which means a run can turn a corner, follow a curve, or climb a slope in a series of small steps without a saw ever coming out.
It is light. One person can carry a 6ft panel. Two can put up a twenty-foot run in a morning. That alone changes what is possible in a garden with no side access.
The words all mean the same thing. Hurdle, wattle, woven and wicker fencing are the same product under different names — the trade calls them hurdles, the old craft name is wattle. If you arrived searching for woven fence panels, you are in the right place.
Hazel or willow?
Both are coppiced British wood, woven the same way, and last about as long. They differ in colour and in substance.
Hazel
Soft silver-grey with olive and honey in it. Thicker rods, a looser and more openly rustic weave. It is the more robust of the two — it takes knocks and hard wear better, which is why it was the traditional material for penning livestock.
Choose hazel when you want the boundary to recede: cottage gardens, older houses, allotments, stone and gravel.
Willow
Deep, warm red-brown — russet through to oxblood depending on the light. Slim rods woven close and even, so the panel reads as a finished surface. The tighter weave screens slightly better at the same height.
Choose willow when you want the fence to add something: courtyards, contemporary planting, red brick, anywhere it will be looked at rather than past.
Neither is the better product. We go through it properly in hazel or willow — choosing the weave, including the surprise that they cost within about £2 of each other at every height.
Heights, and what each one is for
| Height | What it does | Hazel | Willow |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1ft × 6ft | Edging beds, borders and paths | £27.49 | £28.99 |
| 2ft × 6ft | Low definition between planting areas | £31.76 | £29.79 |
| 3ft × 6ft | Boundaries you still want to see over | £32.25 | £30.30 |
| 4ft × 6ft | Screening a patio or seating area | £38.37 | £36.65 |
| 5ft × 6ft | Privacy without fully enclosing | £45.90 | £46.41 |
| 6ft × 6ft | Full-height boundary | £53.92 | £54.16 |
The rule most customers arrive at: 4ft if you want to soften a view, 5ft or 6ft if you want to stop one. Below 3ft is decorative — lovely, but it will not hide anything.
What a run actually costs
Panels are only part of it, so here is a whole 24ft run at full height, which is the job most people are pricing:
24ft of 6ft hazel hurdle fencing
4 panels at £53.92 — £215.68
5 posts (2.4m UC4) at £15.22 — £76.10
1 pack of 50 stainless cable ties — £11.02
Delivery — £14.99
Total — £317.79, or about £13.24 a foot
Note the posts: one per 6ft join plus one to close the run, so four panels need five posts, not four. That catch accounts for most of the “I’m one post short” calls we take on a Saturday.
Putting it up
- Set the posts. Use 1.8m UC4 posts for panels up to 4ft and 2.4m for 5ft and 6ft. Allow around 60cm below ground. Drive them on firm ground; concrete them on soft, sandy, exposed or coastal sites.
- Leave clearance underneath. An inch or two of daylight between the bottom of the panel and the soil. This single detail does more for the life of a hurdle than any treatment you can buy.
- Tie at four points per upright. Four stainless steel cable ties to each post, so eight per panel, threaded through the weave and drawn tight. Not galvanised wire, which work-hardens where it is twisted and snaps. Not screws, which split the uprights.
- Trim the tails. Pliers give a tighter finish and let you cut the ends flush so nobody catches a hand.
Photographs of the whole sequence are in our fitting guide.
How long does hurdle fencing last?
Five to ten years in an ordinary British garden. The spread is wide because the conditions are. A panel with air on both sides, clear of wet soil, fixed firmly to a solid post reaches the top of that range. One standing in a puddle against a north wall does not.
What kills a woven panel is standing water and movement, not age. Our guide to how long hazel hurdles last goes through the whole thing, and applies to willow equally.
Common questions
Is hurdle fencing strong enough for a boundary?
Yes, at 5ft or 6ft on properly set posts. It is genuinely better than solid panels on exposed sites, because it sheds wind rather than catching it. What it is not is a security fence — it marks and screens a boundary, it does not defend one.
Does it need treating?
No, and we would rather you did not. These are untreated coppiced rods, and the usual fence stains sit on the surface, trap moisture in the weave and can shorten the life of a panel. Clearance underneath and firm fixings do far more good.
Can I fit it to existing posts?
If they are round and sound, yes — hurdles tie to the face of a post, so anything you can get a cable tie around will do. Square concrete posts are awkward but not impossible. If the existing posts are rotten at the base, replace them; the panel will only ever be as good as what holds it.
Will it screen my garden completely?
At 6ft, near enough. A woven panel has small gaps by nature — that is what makes it wind-permeable — so you will see light through it up close. From a few feet back it reads as solid. Willow’s tighter weave screens marginally better than hazel at the same height.
Do you deliver?
Across the UK mainland, £14.99 flat whatever the size of the order, packed so the panels arrive as they left.
Start here
Browse hazel hurdles or willow hurdles in all six heights, add the posts and ties to match, and the whole run arrives together. Not sure what you need? Tell us what the fence has to do and we will work it out with you — we would far rather do that than have you order the wrong height.