Now for the somewhat tedious and definitely satisfying job of weaving. Actually it can save time if you have a helper splitting and you're weaving. The basic process is to slip the split sticks between the uprights so they stay put. Start with a row around shoulder-height all the way down and work your way up for a fence like mine. I did this so that if I ran out of weaving sticks I'd still have coverage around eye-level, and I can always add more later if I like! Since honeysuckle is already starting to engulf the fence I doubt it'll be needed this year though.

Here are some tips to help make the weave look nicer and the fence straighter:

*twist the vertical sticks if they're facing a funny direction, as most bamboo won't be dead-straight.

*if you can't twist it, put more weaving sticks on the side you'd like to have "pushed" straight. every stick you add adds pressure on the unruly pole.

*don't worry about keeping to any pattern. Some sticks will be longer than others, some poles will warrant very even weaving, others will want to clump together like they're a single pole, Just roll with it.

*try not to let the ends of too many sticks be too close together, this will make a weaker spot in the fence if anything pushes on it, and it draws the eye to that spot rather than the whole fence.

*when you use one large stick, even it out with some smaller ones to keep the look consistent. Don't put all your wide sticks on one end of the fence and all the scrawny ones on the other.