What is "garden edging?" On an aesthetic level, garden edging could be said to "define a border" within your yard, e.g., between a lawn and a mulched garden bed. Garden edging also goes by the names, "lawn edging" or "landscape edging"; I use these terms interchangeably.
The simplest type of garden edging is a shallow trench cut at a lawn's edge. But trenches must be re-cut periodically, and most homeowners prefer a type of garden edging that doesn't require so much maintenance.
Enter the various garden edging products that are sold commercially. Be they metal or plastic, wood or brick, the idea behind most of them is the same: installed in the ground between lawn and garden, they'll give you the look of a clean edge.
Should you still consider installing garden edging even if you don't care about having a clean edge? Yes, because, for a full definition of "garden edging," we must go beyond aesthetics to a more practical level. Most people prefer the finished look that a clean edge lends to a landscape design; but, as is generally the case in aesthetics, that's just an opinion.
Opinions aside, however, there are practical reasons for separating a lawn from a planting bed with garden edging:
- Many lawn grasses spread via stolons. Without garden edging, you'll be constantly pulling grass out of your planting beds.
- If you don't contain the mulch in your planting bed, it will spill over into your lawn (and you'll end up distributing it even further afield when you mow).
- One form of garden edging is a "mowing strip" (or "mower strip"; see photo above). When mowing, you run the wheels on one side of your mower right on top of the mowing strip. This allows you to mow borders up-close, so as to avoid having to use string trimmers.
I discuss the materials and tools needed to install garden edging on Page 2....
