Farm Gates

Simple swinging bar gate with center chain-lock.

People around here who live on a half acre or more tend to have their properties gated. Their land might be fenced, or have a stone wall, or just have the perimeter lined with trees or bushes. And if they live on raw lava, often just the driveway is blocked in some fashion. A simple chain and lock is common. Other times it's a length of fencing that is pulled aside to let a car pass. And then there are those of us who opt for a gate.

Wood facing on a metal gate. Solar powered opener. 

Why gate your driveway? Most obviously - keep cars and trucks out. But it also tells people that they shouldn't enter without permission. It's like the front door of your house. Knock but don't enter unless the door is opened for you. So even a simple rope cross a driveway is a reminder not to tresspass.

Gate made of  fencing with orange ribbons tied to it. 

Post and rail with board, set back from the road. 

A gate with close bars or with fencing on it is commonly used when the land has sheep that need confining. But such a gate is also used to keep something out....pigs. Feral pigs can destroy a garden or nursery in one night, so fencing and a proper gate is mandatory for protection against foraging pigs. 

Basic chain with lock. Kapu sign!

 I find it interesting to see the different ways people gate their driveways. Rope. Chain. Wooden gate. Metal gate. Plain. Fancy. Some people really get into having an individual style gate. Or some unique color. Makes giving directions a lot easier......."Go one mile and look for the red gate on the left."

Close mesh metal gate keeps pigs out. 

This one is designed to keep the sheep in. 

Wrought iron gate, jumbo style. Allows large commercial
trucks to pass through. 

Sturdy bar gate with chain lock around an ohia upright post.

And last of the photos, our gate here on our farm. We opted for sturdy metal to keep the neighbor's stray cows from destroying the garden for the umh-teenth time. Then we had problems with some feral pigs so we welded hog panel to the gate. Most recently the elderly farm dog started going under the gate, so we added plastic mesh to the bottom. To top it all off,  I choose yellow paint in order to be unique on the road. Very easy to give directions! 

Bright yellow metal gate with mesh. Locked of course.