Jatoba Fencing

Jatoba fencing — Brazilian Cherry — gives a fence line real hardwood substance and an unmistakable warm red color. At 2,350 Janka, Jatoba pickets are roughly seven times harder than cedar and more than three times harder than pressure-treated pine, so they resist denting, splitting from impact, and the surface abrasion that makes softwood fences look tired within a few seasons.

Jatoba's color is the reason most homeowners choose it. Fresh pickets run salmon-orange to russet, then deepen into a saturated reddish-brown over the first months of sun exposure — a color that a horizontal-slat or privacy fence shows off across its whole surface. Left untreated it weathers to silver-gray; annual UV oil keeps the red.

The wood resists rot, decay, and insects naturally, so no chemical treatment is needed anywhere along the fence — an advantage around gardens, pools, pets, and children. Expect up to 40+ years of service on pickets and rails with sound detailing.

Because Jatoba is more moisture-responsive than Ipe, keep boards up off the soil, set posts in concrete footings rather than direct burial where possible, and seal cut ends. Detailed that way, a Jatoba fence outlasts three or four cedar fences and looks considerably better doing it.