Best way to create wooden screening in the garden?

[BucksDad]

I have some left over larch cladding from cladding my workshop and we have a sunken trampoline we want to screen with the cladding and then plant in front of it. It needs to last about 10 years by which time the kids should be well past the trampoline and we can take it out and do something else.

We are planning for something like this (ignore the plants in this pic )

The cladding itself will be 44mm square and max height of 1.8m. Spacing will be 44mm between the cladding posts and a gentle curve for a total distance of approx 2.5m, so we are planning for 30 posts.

What do people think is the best / easiest way to do this?
Options I have thought of...

1. Get some flat strap and sink it into a concrete trench and go above ground level and then screw the posts to two pieces of strap

2. Concrete trench and just sink the posts in them (opinions on size of trench, I was thinking 200mm deep, 150mm wide?)

3. Wooden sleepers tied into ground with anchors, cladding screwed to front of sleepers

Feel free to chime in with any suggestions / thoughts!

 

[Sachakins]

May not be a good idea to have something sticking up around a trampoline. Tempting serious injury if landed on.

 

[BucksDad]

May not be a good idea to have something sticking up around a trampoline. Tempting serious injury if landed on.

The trampoline is sunken so it’s ground level and has safety netting all around it. To land it on my kids would have to leap 1.8m over the netting so I don’t see it happening

 

[Sachakins]

That sounds OK. Just that a neighbours kid came through netting, it split, luckily nothing around to land on.
The net had been left up at least 3 years, so may have started to perish being out in all weather's.

 

[BucksDad]

That sounds OK. Just that a neighbours kid came through netting, it split, luckily nothing around to land on.
The net had been left up at least 3 years, so may have started to perish being out in all weather's.

Thanks - that makes me feel better that we go to the effort of 'winterising' the trampoline and pack the netting away every winter and put a heavy duty cover on the trampoline but I will keep an eye on the netting and replace if necessary

 

[--Tom--]

Could you put posts and rails and then fix to that or do both sides need to be visually appealing?

 

[Simon89]

I would be concerned that just securing the bottom they are likely to bow out of shape and alignment

 

[BucksDad]

Could you put posts and rails and then fix to that or do both sides need to be visually appealing?

Only needs to be appealing one side, but my wife would like a curve so that makes it not so simple with post / rails

 

[BucksDad]

I would be concerned that just securing the bottom they are likely to bow out of shape and alignment

That's a good point, I guess some horizontal bracing would be required

 

[baldkev]

If you got creative and laminate yourself 3 x long curves out pf thin strips, it'd probably be just about sturdy enough when tied together...... the ground anchoring being important, i.e posts set in concrete every 1.8m, the 3 curved horizontal rails fixed to posts and battens fixed to the curved rail..... use d4 or epoxy to laminate, go slightly tighter than needed to allow for springback

Could be an interesting project

 

[BucksDad]

If you got creative and laminate yourself 3 x long curves out pf thin strips, it'd probably be just about sturdy enough when tied together...... the ground anchoring being important, i.e posts set in concrete every 1.8m, the 3 curved horizontal rails fixed to posts and battens fixed to the curved rail..... use d4 or epoxy to laminate, go slightly tighter than needed to allow for springback

Could be an interesting project

I think you overestimate my skill set @baldkev but it sounds like a fun challenge. And my wife wants it done all next bank holiday weekend - I might have to miss the coronation!

 

[baldkev]

I think you overestimate my skill set @baldkev but it sounds like a fun challenge. And my wife wants it done all next bank holiday weekend - I might have to miss the coronation!

Wasnt that today???

Edit: just googled it, 6th may. I thought it was today, but its just a bank holiday today

 

[murphy]

You shouldn't do it next weekend, as it is the coronation on Saturday, show some respect?
I would use the concrete trench method that you have in mind and I agree thin laminate strips are the way to go if she wants it curved, it just adds more time, making the strips, but it will look much better when finished --good luck