Picket fences are a type of

fence A fence is a structure that encloses an area, typically outdoors, and is usually constructed from posts that are connected by boards, wire, rails or net (textile), netting. A fence differs from a wall in not having a solid foundation along its ...

often used decoratively for domestic boundaries, distinguished by their evenly spaced vertical boards, the ''pickets'', attached to horizontal rails. Picket fences are particularly popular in the United States, with the white picket fence coming to symbolize the ideal

middle-class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Commo ...

suburban A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...

life.

History

Picket fences are particularly popular in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, where the style has been used since America's earliest colonial era and remains popular today. Pickets were historically sharpened logs used to defend positions and used as such by early colonists. Now they are a decorative way to contain pets and children without blocking views, and are used around both front and back yards. Traditionally picket fences were made out of wood and

paint Paint is a material or mixture that, when applied to a solid material and allowed to dry, adds a film-like layer. As art, this is used to create an image or images known as a painting. Paint can be made in many colors and types. Most paints are ...

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

(or

whitewash Whitewash, calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, asbestis or lime paint is a type of paint made from slaked lime ( calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2) or chalk (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), sometimes known as "whiting". Various other additives are sometimes ...

ed), but now picket fences are also widely available in low-maintenance

polyvinyl chloride Polyvinyl chloride (alternatively: poly(vinyl chloride), colloquial: vinyl or polyvinyl; abbreviated: PVC) is the world's third-most widely produced synthetic polymer of plastic (after polyethylene and polypropylene). About 40 million tons of ...

(PVC or Vinyl). Until the introduction of

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a Product (business), product or Service (economics), service. Advertising aims to present a product or service in terms of utility, advantages, and qualities of int ...

on fences in the 1980s, cricket fields were usually surrounded by picket fences, giving rise to the expression "rattling the pickets" for a ball hit firmly into the fence.

Design

A picket fence is generally tall. A horizontal top rail and bottom rail are attached to fence posts, which are installed upright into the ground. Evenly spaced boards are affixed vertically to the rails. These boards with pointed tops are called "pickets" for their resemblance to the pointed stakes historically used by infantry to repel cavalry. Picket fences can be made of several types of materials. Historically, wood has been the most popular material used for picket fences. This wood can be untreated, treated, or naturally insect and rot resistant. Available non-wood options include vinyl (PVC) and aluminum.

Installation

The first step in installing a picket fence is to insert the posts into the ground. Traditionally this is done by digging deep holes (usually x ) either manually or with a power auger. The posts are then placed upright into the ground and concrete is poured to cement them into place. Once they are set, the horizontal rails are affixed to the posts using fasteners, and finally the pickets can be attached to the horizontal rails. By far the most time-consuming part of installing a picket fence is setting the posts. OrazioneOrtoBotticelli

There are some vinyl picket fence systems on the market that are installed without digging holes or pouring concrete. These are installed by driving pipe deep into the ground, which is how chain link fence has been installed for years. This is the most popular way to install vinyl fence in Western Canada, where the deep frost can heave concrete footings out of the ground.

Symbolism

The picket fence, particularly when white, has iconic status as Americana, symbolizing the ideal

life, with a family and children, large house, and peaceful living. This stems from the fact that houses in quiet, middle-class neighborhoods often have yards enclosed by picket fences. This symbolism is also common to works critical of the middle-class lifestyle. For example, the director

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (January 20, 1946 – January 16, 2025) was an American filmmaker, visual artist, musician, and actor. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, Lynch was often called a "visionary" and received acclaim f ...

uses ironic images of the picket fence in his 1986 film '' Blue Velvet''.

In popular culture

Botticelli Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi ( – May 17, 1510), better known as Sandro Botticelli ( ; ) or simply known as Botticelli, was an Italian painter of the Early Renaissance. Botticelli's posthumous reputation suffered until the late 1 ...

shows a picket fence in his painting ''Agony in the Garden'', painted c. 1500. :File:OrazioneOrtoBotticelli.jpg * The phrase "picket fence" also describes text without spaces between words. Such texts are very common in

Old Latin Old Latin, also known as Early, Archaic or Priscan Latin (Classical ), was the Latin language in the period roughly before 75 BC, i.e. before the age of Classical Latin. A member of the Italic languages, it descends from a common Proto-Italic ...

, with documents often lacking both spaces and punctuation.Latin for Dummies

Gallery

File:Picket fence simple.jpg, A simple picket fence File:JarrahFence gobeirne.jpg,

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

n jarrah picket fence File:Tongshan-County-village-lotus-pond-front-yard-9901.jpg, White picket fence surrounds a front-yard Lotus pond in a village in

Hubei Hubei is a province of China, province in Central China. It has the List of Chinese provincial-level divisions by GDP, seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland ...

, China File:WallendbeenCricketGround.JPG, A cricket oval in Wallendbeen,

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, with a white picket fence File:JiminyPicketVinylFence.jpg, A PVC (or vinyl) Picket Fence File:Gothic Picket Fence.jpg, A gothic-style picket fence built using pressure treated pine File:Metal picket fence in Russia.jpg, Colorful metal picket fence in Russia

References

{{Reflist Fences Engineering barrages Culture of the United States