Many Torquay gardens already have a hard privacy boundary in place and still want a softer timber face in front of it - for planting depth, for a warmer look from the lawn, or to hide a darker fence without replacing it. On this plot the client wanted horizontal hit-and-miss boarding as that front screen, and the result is a clean, layered garden edge that does exactly what each layer is meant to do.

The finished horizontal hit-and-miss timber screen from the lawn, with the darker privacy fence behind.

The Project: A Soft Timber Screen in Torquay

The boundary on this plot was already handled by a taller charcoal composite privacy fence. What the garden was missing was a softer timber face in front of it - something to break up the hard dark line and give the planting beds a warmer backdrop. The client asked us to build horizontal hit-and-miss boarding as that front screen.

What we built:

Horizontal hit-and-miss (slatted) timber fencing - narrow boards with small gaps for a soft screen rather than a solid wall
A continuous light timber line, including the corner wrap where the screen turns

What we did not build:

The raised planters / planter faces in front of the fence
The taller charcoal or grey composite privacy fence behind our screen

Being clear about that scope matters. The new slats are the timber screening layer; the dark fence behind remains the solid privacy boundary, and the raised beds in front stay as they were.

The slatted screen running past the raised planters, showing the layered garden edge.

Why Hit-and-Miss Slats Suit Torquay Gardens

Closeboard is still the right answer when you need a solid, gap-free boundary. Hit-and-miss (or horizontal slatted screening) is different: the small gaps break wind a little, keep the garden from feeling boxed in, and sit cleanly against contemporary house styles around Torbay.

It is also a good choice when a solid privacy fence is already in place and you want a timber layer in front rather than a full rebuild. Rather than ripping out a perfectly serviceable boundary, the slats give you the timber look and a softer elevation without losing the privacy you already have.

If you are comparing styles, our panel fencing and trellis pages cover other light-screening options.

A planting detail against the new slatted screen - the timber makes a warm backdrop for the beds.

The Installation

The screen was built on site so the board lines and the corner wrap could be set true to the ground and to the existing features around it. Building slats in situ, rather than fixing pre-made panels, lets us follow the levels accurately and keep the gaps even where the ground shifts or the run turns a corner.

The corner wrap where the horizontal slats turn, kept as a continuous timber line.

From the lawn you read a continuous light timber elevation; the taller dark fence behind remains the hard privacy line, and the raised beds in front stay as they were.

The continuous timber screen elevation seen from the lawn.

The Result

The client now has a Torquay garden edge with a proper horizontal hit-and-miss timber screen - soft from the lawn, sharp in the detail, and clear about what each layer does. Solid privacy stays with the existing dark fence behind; the new slats do the timber screening in front.

The completed screen alongside the raised planters - the layers each do their own job.