The Best Garden Enclosure Kits in 2023: A Buying Guide with Reviews

If you’re like me, sometimes it’s nice to buy a kit or pre-made project that can save time.   Less planning and more gardening!

These garden enclosure kits can help make sure your fruits & vegetables don’t become food for birds, squirrels, and other pests. 

Perhaps pests are not your problem and you’re simply looking for a decorative garden enclosure kit. 

Or perhaps you have a small garden on an apartment patio that you’re looking to decorate or protect from birds. 

The truth is that all garden enclosures are not created equal.    Some may be better than others based on your needs.  

You’re likely reading this article because you’re trying to find a less time consuming and/or less expensive alternative to simply building a fence around your garden. 

These garden enclosure ideas are a great way to preserve your back and bank account!

Let’s take a look at the best 5 garden enclosure kits on the market to help you find one that’s best for you.

Growner Crop Cage:  Best Overall

The Growner Crop Cage does it all.  It keeps most pests out including birds, rabbits, deer, even snails and insects.

 

The full length zipper allows you to easily walk into the net enclosure to do your gardening.   No hunching or bumping your head!

Growner Crop Cage Amazon Link

Pros

  • Height allows for walk in gardening 
  • Netting small enough to keep out most pests, even insects
  • Sturdy frame and ground staples included
  • Cost friendly 

Cons

  • May not keep out burrowing pests
  • Not as decorative as other enclosures
  • Some users say set up instructions are not clear

Growner Crop Cage Review:

Though some users complain that the instructions included are not sufficient, they said they were able to easily figure it out using photos on Amazon.

This is a lightweight garden enclosure kit that just about anyone can set up and break down.

It comes with a storage bag making it easy to tuck away at the end of the growing season. 

Due to it’s ease of set up & breakdown, walk in capability and low price point, we’ve picked the Growner Crop Cage as the best garden enclosure kit for most people.

Quictent Portable: Best Greenhouse Enclosure

In some cases you may want to control the temperature of your garden enclosure.

Some plants can thrive in a greenhouse in a location where they would otherwise suffer if exposed directly to the environment.

With the Quictent Portable Greenhouse, you can actually achieve good results from a portable greenhouse tent with out having to build one out of glass. 

Quictent Portable Amazon Link

Pros

  • Plastic walls allow for temperature controlled enclosure
  • Tall enough to walk into
  • Sturdy frame with tie down ropes included
  • Cost friendly 

Cons

  • Some users say that it collapses in high winds
  • May not keep out burrowing pests
  • Reports indicate the shelves included are not sturdy.

Quictent Portable Review :

This is one of the best garden enclosure kits for people who live in areas with harsh weather conditions.

It will allow you to extend your vegetable grow season and store your ornamentals during the winter.

The biggest complaints are from folks say it doesn’t stand up to high winds.  If you live in a windy area, try to set it next to a structure that shields it from the wind.

You also might consider one of the other more aerodynamic models that will hold up better in the wind.  

And if you’re ok spending more money, you can try one of the sturdy models made with polycarbonate.

But if you’re in a light wind area looking to temperature control your plants, the Quictent Portable Greenhouse is a great option. 

BestNest Wire Cloche:  Best Individual Plant Enclosure

Some might find it easier and more decorative to individually enclose their plants. If that’s you, look no further than the BestNest Wire Cloche.

These miniature garden enclosures are great for people who don’t have too many plants and are looking for protection from larger pests such as birds and rodents. 

They are also lightweight, decorative and very easy to remove when you need to harvest fruit or prune. 

Pros

  • Decorative
  • Easy to remove making your plants very accessible
  • Suitable to all weather conditions
  • Durable: should last many seasons 

Cons

  • Cost:   Per plant protection cost is high 
  • May not keep out burrowing pests

BestNest Wire Cloche Review:

If you’re looking for something easy and decorative that prevents larger pests from snacking on your vegetables, this might be the best garden enclosure idea for you. 

Users rave about how good these cloches look in their garden. 

One common criticism that customers have who’ve purchased these wire enclosure is that they are overpriced.  

If you go this route, you will pay more to keep less plants protected.

But if you look at these cloches as serving the dual purpose of protecting your plants as well as decorating your garden, you may be ok spending the extra money for them. 

Zippity Outdoor Fence Newport: Best Decorative Garden Enclosure

The Zippity Outdoor Fence Newport is probably the most labor intensive of the garden enclosure kits we are recommending.

You’ll end up doing some drilling, hammering and puzzling some pieces together with this option.

Some users even recommend purchasing a post driver and/or sledgehammer to help with installation.  

It’s also recommended to consult Zippity’s website directly for more thorough installation instructions

Although it’s requires a bit more work on your end than the other options here, what you’ll be left with is a professional looking, decorative garden enclosure that will last for years. 

Pros

  • Decorative, professional look
  • Low maintenance & long lasting vinyl makeup
  • Requires a fraction of the work of a DIY fence

Cons

  • Installation takes time. In some cases a full day
  • Does not keep out small pests like birds & squirrels.
  • For large spaces you need to buy multiple panels which can get expensive

Zippity Outdoor Fence Newport Review

This is the best garden enclosure kit for people who are not afraid to take on a project.

But unlike building a fence from scratch, you don’t need any construction expertise to install this.

The only research you’ll need to do is consult the installation guide on Zippity’s website.

No painting or staining required making this a low maintenance fence that will last you a long time. 

The biggest complaints are from people who found it harder to install than advertised.  

Users say that despite it being “no dig” as advertised, they found that they did need to dig at the areas around the fence posts.

Overall the Zippity Newport Fence is a great option for those who don’t quite want to spend the money or take the time to have a fence installed, yet are not afraid to carve out a day and break a tiny sweat to install. 

Amagabeli Decorative Fence:  Best Enclosure on a Budget

If you’re looking for a garden enclosure kit that’s inexpensive, keeps most pests out, and looks pretty good, the Amagabeli Fence might be the best option.

These are super light small wire fences that you stick in the ground around your garden.   They take minutes to install and provide a nice decorative accent to your garden. 

It may be better, however, to think of this fencing as more of a deterrent than an enclosure.   Squirrel sized pests or smaller will have no problem getting through this fencing.

Even larger pests, if determined, could knock or jump over this flimsy wire. 

Pros

  • Inexpensive option for 35ft or more of fencing
  • Keeps large pests like dogs out and deters some smaller pests
  • Can enclose irregularly shaped gardens
  • Easy to install

Cons

  • Will not keep birds out and smaller pests like squirrels might still be a problem
  • Not sturdy enough to keep out hungry pests

Amagabeli Decorative Fence Review:

There is a reason why you see this garden enclosure for sale everywhere from your local drug store to the finest nurseries in town.

Most people are just trying to keep larger pests like cats & dogs out of their garden.

It’s inexpensive, easy to install and looks pretty good. 

​If that’s all you’re looking for, you may not need to break the bank on one of the larger garden enclosures above.

If you have raised wood planter beds that are not square or you want to get creative when it comes to the shape of your garden, the Amagabeli Decorative Fence can be handy because it’s so flexible and easy to shape.  

How to Keep Burrowing Pests Out of Your Garden

You might have noticed in our analysis of the best garden enclosure kits above, most of our suggestions do not help to keep burrowing pests out of your garden.

Burrowing pests can be tricky and require entirely separate enclosure ideas or deterrents.

One thing you can add to any of the garden enclosure ideas above is to cut out some chicken wire depicted below and bury it so it runs along the lower edge of your above ground fencing. 

So it’s almost like you’re extending any of the kit fencing ideas underground.   

You’ll want to extend your fencing with chicken wire at least 1 foot underground in order to provide adequate prevention.

You can also curve the bottom of the chicken wire so that it runs parallel to the surface of the ground.   When the burrowing hits the fencing as they dig, they’ll likely be deterred and turn around. 

Another idea to keep burrowing pests out that requires less work is to sprinkle chili flakes all along the base of of the enclosure fencing.

Many gardeners swear by this technique and claims that the smell & taste of the chili is enough to deter most burrowing pests. 

Gravel and mulch can also be laid down in areas that are susceptible to digging.  This makes it harder to access the dirt that burrowing pests are more comfortable digging through. 

A Helpful Video on Building Your Own Garden Enclosure

DIY Garden Enclosure

Conclusion

As we mentioned above, each of these garden enclosure kits serve a different purpose. Hopefully we’ve helped you make a decision based on your specific needs.

If we had to pick one that’s the best garden enclosure kit to serve most people’s needs, we’d have to go with the Growner as the best garden enclosure kit on the market. It keeps pests out, it’s tall enough for a person to stand up in, and it’s cost won’t break the bank.

There’s also always the option of building an enclosure yourself. You’ll spend a bit more, it’ll take you longer to get it set up, but you’ll be left with a garden enclosure that will last decades: