Defensive Landscaping

From ZombieSquadWiki

Defensive landscaping is an excellent way to help make your bug out location more easily defended and harder to break into while you are not actively defending it. Defensive landscaping makes use of various plants, fences, and other landscaping features to create hardened perimeters and passive defenses.

1 Basic Concepts
2 Defensive Landscaping Features

Basic Concepts

Defensive landscaping works on several principles, which are covered below. Defensive landscaping should also be pleasing to the eye to avoid unwanted attention.

Classifying the Opponent is one of the most important aspects of defensive landscaping; specifically identifying and classifying potential intruders so that they can be dealt with effectively without doing more harm than necessary. Nuisance children, for example, will be on foot and can be a source of legal liability if they are harmed; children are best deterred by an obviously present threat such as fencing and thorns. Animals are another intruder, they can be extremely damaging to gardens and other property and are generally best dealt with through fencing. Hostile, adult humans are the most serious threat, they might approach on foot or vehicle, directly or stealthily, and are far more diligent than other intruders.

Passive physical barriers are the first defensive landscaping feature, they generally are simple yet difficult to pass such as ditches and boulders to stop vehicle and fences to keep out more easily dissuaded intruders.

Pain and Trauma can be inflicted by some barriers such as plants. These are usually thorny or otherwise sharp plants and objects that are easily spotted yet unavoidable.

Visibility is a careful balancing act of providing yourself with good lines of sight for observation and weapons use if necessary while trying to conceal yourself from view as much as possible. Put simply, you want to conceal yourself without providing concealment for intruders.

Controlling Intruders is also important. No intruder can be fully controlled, but making some pathways (such as the one to your hopefully sturdy front door) easier than others will help to persuade a potential intruder to take a path that is more predictable and has other defenses at the ready (i.e. dogs, reinforced entrances, etc...). This is accomplished with careful placement of barriers and lighting.

Protecting Points of Entry , such as windows, often requires the most effort. The heaviest boulders, deepest ditches, and most vicious plants are useless if they are not placed in such a way as to serve their ultimate purpose, to keep potential intruders out. Always make sure to plan your defensive landscape in such a way to protect vulnerable points of entry.

Defensive Landscaping Features

Barriers, Fences, and Walls

Fences, walls, and other barriers are an extremely common part of landscaping, using the proper type of barrier will help contribute to the security of your home or BOL. Fences, typically used to keep out animals and people, must have their posts anchored properly in sufficiently deep concrete and be high enough to be impractical to jump over or climb. Other types of barriers are typically oriented towards stopping vehicles, these must be very large and extremely heavy.

Chain-link fences are generally made of steel and make a strong barrier while also being virtually transparent. Unfortunately chain-link fence of a sufficient height is often not allowed in certain neighborhoods and it is also less than aesthetically pleasing and can attract unwanted attention. Chain-link fence makes an excellent structure for climbing plants, many of which are thick, thorny, and fruiting all of which are excellent properties for someone seeking to be prepared. Chain-link fence is often the least expensive and most quickly deployed type of fence.

Ornamental fences generally consist of evenly spaced vertical bars of steel, aluminum, or PVC. These fences are aesthetically pleasing, often feature a rather menacing top section, make excellent structure for climbing plants, and depending on material are extremely durable and strong. Unfortunately these fences tend to be much more expensive than other types of fence.

Picket fences can offer total privacy (depending upon spacing), are generally allowed to be much higher that chain-link, and are more aesthetically pleasing. Unfortunately the privacy they provide works two ways and can also provide much desired cover to a potential intruder once they have penetrated the fence, neither do picket fences offer particularly good structure to most types of climbing plants. Finally, picket fence is available in many different materials such as wood, concrete, and PVC. Depending on what material and construction method is used, the fences can be very strong or easily defeated.

Stone walls vary in popularity depending upon location and offer a very strong, privacy providing barrier that also provides an excellent structure for climbing plants.

Water makes an excellent barrier against vehicles and many other possible threats, but ponds and lakes take a significant amount of planning and effort to either build or built a home next to. However, as a bonus, water barriers can provide food in the form of fish and aquatic plants. Water barriers can also be used as a source of water for household use.

Concrete Planters filled with earth and decorative plants are a popular method of stopping vehicles as they are both aesthetically pleasing and very effective if they are large enough.

Boulders are some of the most effective objects for stopping vehicles, as long as they are as large and heavy as possible, while also being attractive and inconspicuous.

Ditches are an inexpensive and very effective way to control vehicles, the deeper and wider they are, the more vehicles they will be able to stop.

Jersey Barriers, large concrete or water-filled objects commonly used on roadways, offer extremely effective barriers against vehicles, however, they lack aesthetic appeal and will generally look out of place on a residential property.

High Ground

Having the high ground takes planning prior to building a home, but the advantage of high ground against hostile forces has been used throughout all of known history. High ground provides superior sighting as well as a more difficult approach for the enemy. High ground will also provide protection from flooding. On the other hand, placing yourself on high ground also makes your dwelling far more visible.

Lighting

Properly placed lighting, both static and motion activated, will be avoided by intruders forcing them into better defended areas. It also allows you to see what is going on more effectively. Lighting that is projected from your house outwards also adversely effects an intruders ability to observe your home.

Plants

Plants are one of the most important parts of defensive landscaping they create difficult to defeat barriers as well as passive pain-causing defenses. Certain plants are more desirable than others and can be identified by one or more of several specific characteristics.

Thorns are one of the most desirable traits for defensive plants. Thorns cause pain to those who touch them and snag on clothing and gear making them difficult to work through, snagging can also collect evidence for later use.

Sharp edges are also desireable feature of some plants that easily cut clothing and skin, making them an excellent deterrent to potential intruders.

Climbing vines and other plants are extremely desirable due to their ability to cover fences and surfaces with thick, pain-causing or otherwise difficult to penetrate barriers that can improve the aesthetics of that which they grow upon.

Dense plants are more desirable than sparse plants for defense. The thicker plant growth is the harder it is to cut through or otherwise penetrate.

Example Plants

These are some plants that exemplify ideal defensive plants.

Raspberries and similar plants are some of the most ideal plants for defense and general preparedness. They climb, grow very dense, have thorns and as a bonus provide edible fruit.