Having a fenced area in the plains where you grow flax and barley... is having a base in the plains for farming flax and barley. Just because it's also in the meadow doesn't make having to be in the plains to grow flax and barley any less true. My plains base is right at the edge of the plains too. It's still a plains base.

Having bases near multiple biomes is good, though. I have one base near meadow/black forest for tin/copper, one base near a swamp/mountain for iron/silver, and a base on the edge of plains/meadow for blackmetal/flax. No reason to transport metal long distances when it's so easy to just set up multiple forge areas.