I appreciate everyone's input, I found a local source for expanded metal sheets that I might go ahead and get if I can manage it. I'm trying to get this all put together while people are still wanting to buy their plants. My original area was getting too crowded. I put up 2 gh frames, both 24 by 24 ft. One I'm covering for growing and the other for now is for the finished plants. I had to hire out the plumbing and electrical which was pretty pricey but worth it so I'm trying to squeeze pennies now to finish it out. Thanks for all your input.

Yes, I have used a Barreto tiller MANY times. (along with every other tiller known ...) Barreto is a hydraulic tiller (i.e. not chain or belt). It is truly the best piece of garden equipment you will ever use. The only downside is they are REALLY expensive. I think they run between 4 and 5 thousand dollars. But, believe it or not, if you need it they are worth the extra dollars. The power and ease of use is truly remarkable. There is a reason virtually every rental yard and landscape contractor (on the West Coast)has gone to Barreto - they simply run and run and run. If you need one buy it - you will not be sorry. The other brands are really not comparable. The only other negative I can think of is the weight - these are heavy duty professional machines - you cannot transport it in your car! They are around 600 lbs. and they are big and bulky. Otherwise they are awesome - but do not take my word for it - rent one and see. You will never bend over to pull rootlets out of the tines again - you cannot stop the tines on this machine! I hope that helps!

If you're talking about weed barrier fabric, that is laid on top of the soil and you cut holes in it where you want plants, and then usually mulched over for appearance's sake, I HATE the stuff. For a number of reasons: (WARNING: Ranting ahead!) -Once you've got holes in it for the plants, the weeds come through, too. -Weeds will grow in mulch, then sink their roots down through the fabric, making holes in it for more weeds. Crab grass is really good at this. -The mulch breaks down and becomes soil, which the weeds will be even happier with. Putting soil over the fabric from the get-go will just speed up this process. -Some ornamentals will try to spread roots on top of the fabric, and inevitably, they can NOT sink their roots through, and start to die. Just yesterday, a friend mentioned to me that her hydrangeas were all doing this. And in the beds at our new place, some old clumps of iris had tried valiently to spread over the top of the fabric, succeeding only because they managed to send roots through the foot+ of mulch the the previous owner put there. Not pretty. -Plants' growth and spreading is limited by the size of the hole in the fabric, so you have to divide more often or enlarge the hole. -Over time, the fabric breaks down and falls apart, making it nearly impossible to remove. -Even intact, it's nearly impossible to remove once you have plants in a bed, or the mulch breaks down and becomes soil. -With the fabric, I can't keep changing my mind about where I want plants - the holes are there and making more holes defeats the purpose. And I love to change my mind. -It's not cheap. -It's a pain to install. Bottom line: it might work for a short time, but then it requires as much, if not more, maintenance than a bed without it would. Therefore, I mulch with more traditional mulches that break down and improve the soil and are often free (newspaper, cardboard, wood chips, shredded leaves, grass clippings, etc.), and weed as needed. Not mulching directly over the irises, of course. But between the clumps and in paths, it sure cuts down the weeding in those areas! Sorry to be so negative about the stuff, but I really do despise it. The new place we just bought has lots of established perennial beds - ALL landscape fabricked several years ago, and now they are a mess, with over a foot of mulch and soil on top of the fabric, weeds growing like mad, and I can't get it out without destroying the beds completely. And in the meantime, I can't plant anything in those beds because the fabric is almost too deep now to dig down to put a new hole in for a plant without a backhoe. *End rant* Diana

For 15 years all cucumbers have grown on plastic deer fence in my garden. Had a few girdled as mentioned, but I start my day with a cup of coffee and a garden walk every day, so 99% get maneuvered through the mesh before they set up housekeeping in the openings. My toddlers love to climb on the deer fence, so I can vouch for its strength when it comes to cukes! Your fence seems a little more butch than the stuff I use, so I'd say you're good to go with your setup.