How to Hide Ugly Fences Including Chain-link

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If you want to cover an ugly chain-link or some other fence, these ideas will help. While plants are often the best long-term solution, there are also improvements you can do today.

For more ideas, also see How to Place a Fence for Maximum Privacy and How to Make a Fence Taller.

4 Ways to Hide Ugly Fence

Ugly chain-link fence and clematis flowers.

An ugly fence can ruin a garden! If you have an unsightly chain-link or other fence, there are options.

While the best solutions may be to cover the fence in vines or line it with shrubs, it’s going to take years for new plants to look good.

In the meantime, there are improvements you can make today.

Options include covering the fence in something more attractive or distracting from it with a screen or other structure.

Tip for Choosing Chain-link Fence

It may be too late if you’re reading this article, but, in the future, if you’re installing chain-link fence, color makes a big difference. Black is the best option, not silver or white.

Silver and white stand out visually, emphasizing the ugliness, while black tends to disappear into its surroundings.

1Cover the Fence

There are all sorts of fence panels available at home improvement stores.

Options include natural materials like bamboo and wood branches.

There are also synthetic fence covers for creating privacy and to act as wind screens.

Some come in panels to fit sections of fencing, others come in rolls to cover long lengths of fencing.

Here is a bamboo panel:

Bamboo fence screen. — Bamboo fence screen

While this next example is not covering chain-link but instead is a free-standing fence, the idea of covering an existing fence in tree branches is interesting.

If you have access to branches, could you create your own panels?

Products on Amazon

Examples on Pinterest

Here’s an example where the chain link is replaced with wood and the original posts are used: chain-link fence converted to wood.

This one has wood on top of the chain link: wood fence over chain-link.

2Add Privacy Screen

Lattice fence extension for privacy with colorful flower baskets. — Creative solution for adding privacy to a garden

If you cannot modify a fence due to HOA regulations or budget, a free-standing screen on your property may be the solution.

Consider where you like to sit in the garden and what the view is like. What can you do to make that spot more enjoyable?

Some sort of vertical structure like the privacy screen (above) or a raised garden bed with a built-in privacy screen can make all the difference.

Raised garden bed with built-in privacy wall.

The closer you place a privacy screen to the area you want to make private, the more effective it will be.

The screen in the image (above) is actually supported by the property fence and helps block the view from neighboring apartments. This is a smart work-around if local bylaws limit how tall a conventional fence can be.

In this next photo the gardener created a lovely woodpile. it’s not only functional but a great disguise for any eyesores behind it.

Woodpile in garden — Woodpile strategically placed to hide ugly fence

More ideas for improving privacy in a backyard garden

3Make a Fence Taller

Lattice panels secured above a standard wood fence to increase privacy.

If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em!

Along with disguising the fence itself, consider whether it’s possible to make the fence taller. Some gardeners do this for privacy while others like the added interest.