Transitioning from roofed to roofless run

[JadeFarms]

How about if you put plants on a roof or something maybe that would make him happy. People just gotta be so difficult . There are palm trees that don’t get super big that may cover it and people sell them all sorts of sizes. I mean there’s always this, technically it’s not a roof it’s plants.

 

[K0k0shka]

How about if you put plants on a roof or something maybe that would make him happy. People just gotta be so difficult . There are palm trees that don’t get super big that may cover it and people sell them all sorts of sizes. I mean there’s always this, technically it’s not a roof it’s plants. View attachment 2381706

I love that look! I'm afraid it would still count as a roof though, and I can't have a roof at the current location. But I like the idea, maybe for something else (or for the coop itself, which can have whatever roof I want because it's farther away).

Palm trees wouldn't survive here, I'm in the Northeast

 

[Ringcraft]

Is a roof a roof if it is technically INSIDE the structure and not on top?

Essentially: "Sir, this is not a roof, it is a large shelf".

 

[21hens-incharge]

I've definitely thought of trees and plants, but the problem is that they'll take a while to grow as tall as I need them to, and, unless I find something evergreen that fits the requirements, they'll lose their privacy screen qualities for half the year. I mentioned this earlier, but I'm also considering getting camouflage netting to use as a tall privacy screen above the fence. I do have a 6-foot-tall wooden privacy fence between us, same height as the run so he can't actually see it from his back yard, but he can see it from the second floor of his house and is complaining about it ruining his window view At this point I wouldn't be required to put a taller privacy screen and I absolutely would not do it just to make him happy (he's been making me miserable since March). I would do it to block my own view of HIM and his smug face.

Part of me is creeped out that he is considering YOUR back yard as his "scenic view".



Bamboo!!!! I think there is a variety that can survive where you are.
https://newenglandbambooco.com/#:~:...lity,as well as a selection of native grasses.
Maybe really tall decorative grasses.....planted in a 2' tall raised bed so they are even taller.....

 

[Folly's place]

I agree! Your yard, appropriated by this individual, as his, really.
Mary

 

[Folly's place]

I think tables, artfully painted to be interesting, and fairly tall, in the run.
Tall like bistro tables?!
Mary

 

[K0k0shka]

Part of me is creeped out that he is considering YOUR back yard as his "scenic view".

Right? What obligation do I have to provide him with scenery? I'm already doing plenty. Our block has lost a lot of trees in recent years because people cut them down - don't want the maintenance or are afraid some day they'll fall on their houses. One neighbor paved over her yard because she didn't want to mow grass. And we've planted 12 trees on our property since we moved in 8 years ago, including street trees (we are the only house on the block that has any street trees). We are an oasis of green when you look over the block, so we're an asset to the neighborhood. But now this guy is trying to rally other neighbors against us because we're "uglifying" the area. At the town meeting, he went as far as to say that my chickens are dropping the property value of the neighborhood, and that if he were looking to buy now, this would've been a deal breaker (oh how I wish that was the case!) Maybe folks are starting to take my scenery for granted...

Bamboo!!!! I think there is a variety that can survive where you are.
Maybe really tall decorative grasses.....planted in a 2' tall raised bed so they are even taller.....

The local zoo has bamboo! I'll look into it. I need something that will 1) get very tall fast, 2) survive the winter, and 3) not lose foliage in the winter, because winter here is half the year.

 

[JadeFarms]

I love that look! I'm afraid it would still count as a roof though, and I can't have a roof at the current location. But I like the idea, maybe for something else (or for the coop itself, which can have whatever roof I want because it's farther away).

Palm trees wouldn't survive here, I'm in the Northeast

Ohhh okay

 

[Folly's place]

Bamboo won't work where you live as a year round screen.
Vines are good, but only if carefully chosen. Grapes and Virginia creeper get huge and need annual pruning. Some people are allergic to Virginia creeper, something to consider. Annual vines disappear every winter, not best.
Some types of clemantis might work, although again, no leaves over winter.
What a miserable experience!
Mary

 

[K0k0shka]

Bamboo won't work where you live as a year round screen.
Vines are good, but only if carefully chosen. Grapes and Virginia creeper get huge and need annual pruning. Some people are allergic to Virginia creeper, something to consider. Annual vines disappear every winter, not best.
Some types of clemantis might work, although again, no leaves over winter.
What a miserable experience!
Mary

Yeah, not a lot of real options in terms of live plants, because I want coverage year-round.

I was thinking of getting some of this - lightweight, obscures the view but lets wind move through:

Not for the roof - the building commissioner told me not to put anything over it, not even greenhouse plastic - but to stretch it above the privacy fence to extend it up another 10 feet or so.