Make Your Yard More Landscaped With Garden Edging.
Autumn is a little about futility; When all the leaves are blowing, it’s hard to keep your yard tidy no matter how much you work on it. One thing that helps, however, is garden edging: a raised lining that runs along the edge of your beds. It creates clean lines and helps “keep” dirt, mulch and leaves within the bed itself. It is quite easy to install, and now, when the ground is soft from the rain, but not frozen from the cold, is the time to install it.
Select materials
What I love about edging is that you don’t have to choose expensive materials to get a great effect. Wood , rubber , and composite edging products exist, although Corten steel is most commonly found in commercial settings. Metal definitely has some advantages in terms of durability and strength, but it’s also inherently less flexible, and flexibility is something you may need if your beds don’t have right angles. You should also think about the overall height of the product you choose, as this may vary.
Measure the beds you want to add edging to and be sure to order an extra 10% of the length – and I’d suggest ordering extra supports as well (these depend on the type of edging you buy).
Prepare the bed
All edges have serrated edges or stakes that go into the ground, but if you were to simply use serrations or stakes to stabilize and secure the edge, they would end up too high above the rest of the bed. You can fill the bed to this level, but you shouldn’t: it will require a lot of material and will bury the tree trunks underground.
The best way to install edging is to dig a trench around the beds and plant the edging in that trench so that it extends above the bed enough to act as a border and “hold” the materials in the bed. The best tools for this job are a trench shovel , which digs a narrow channel, and a flat shovel , which can cut into the soil in a straight line. This will give you the perfect spot to set the edge, and it should fit right into the space left by the shovel. Use a trench shovel to gather up the soil around the edge, and use feet or a tamper to compact the soil around the edge (before you buy a tamper, ask your neighbors; it’s the kind of rarely used tool that someone is always hiding in the garage). from the project).
Make sure the edge is straight up and down and not tilted. Use the appropriate number of supports; Each kit will tell you how often to use the support. Even if the edging appears strong, over time the weight of the garden and shifting soil can affect the shape the edging takes, reducing the effect. The supports will hold it in place.
Strengthen edges and corners
One of the keys to keeping the edge looking clean and remaining effective is to make sure the corners and where the two parts of the edge meet are securely fastened together. Different systems use different methods for this. Some steel edges have notches that secure one piece to the other, while composite and rubber edges usually simply overlap on the support. Since you don’t want the pieces to overlap in the corner, plan accordingly when laying out the edge. If the steel pieces fit together, secure them before burying them in the ground; It’s easier to manipulate when they are free.
Leave no sharp corners
If the edge of the Corten steel is not making contact with itself (for example, it gets stuck on the track), make sure that the metal is not higher than the track – it will be very easy to trip or scratch on it. The best solution is to cut the steel at an angle so that it touches the sidewalk or ground.