How big an area are you fencing in?

That plastic stuff will deteriorate fairly rapidly in the sun - one season for sure, maybe two if you pull it down for the winter, but thats about it.

the area will be about 15x15. Can you recommend anything that will last longer?

Plenty of fencing out there for that. Do a galv pole and commonly a 6x6" mesh at 6'. The locals will tell you what works there. Lots of knowledge.

Dan

We splurged three years ago and erected a 6 ft. chain link fence around our veggie garden and added a 1 foot extender with wire around the perimeter so the total is more like 7 ft. We have tons of deer and they don't even attempt to jump it. It was a small investment but has been worth every penny since I am confident they will never get in. I can sleep easy at night...

This stuff:

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There are also products out there that are filamentous that confuse the deer and prevent them from jumping. But I'll wager anyone you see out there with a garden just puts up a tall fence. And enclose a larger area than you currently need. I used to like riding my bike around the islands in the Puget Sound and along the ride, see what different things folks used to do to their fencing to make it 'unique' or personalized.

Dan

The trick with deer/elk fencing is largely visual - if they see it, and think they can't jump over it, they leave it alone. Not to say that they won't try now and again, and often, something will spook them into trying to jump it. So it needs to be fairly strong. But not like you're trying to fence out a bunch of cattle where you need something really sturdy.

As Dan says, make it bigger. You might wander down to a farm supply store and see what kind of wire mesh fencing they have - I haven't checked prices lately, but I'd think you could make a heckuva deer fence with doubled up "field fence" and 8 foot t-posts for less than $200. This would last decades.

I'd also consider trenching under the fence and installing some rabbit fence under the soil a foot or so to deter these critters as well, extra effort down for gophers if'n you're up to it.

Dan

Thank you for the ideas! I'm going to head to a farm store to check out their fencing. :)