Don't Decide on a Landscape Border Until You Read This!

When it comes to landscaping your house, you probably spend most of your time considering what trees and shrubs you want in your shrubbery beds, or perhaps what type of bedding you will putting in those beds. However, don't allow your choice of edging around those beds to become merely an afterthought. The edging you choose has the potential to turn a well-thought-out selection of plants and bedding material into a shabby looking disaster.

There is a definite temptation to allocate most of the landscape budget to the plants and bedding and little-to-nothing to the edging. In general, the savings reaped from this strategy is minimal. Your choice of border should be reliant upon your yard and its makeup, as a wide variety of landscape borders are possible in almost every price range.

To begin with, the ground the edging will be bordering is the most important consideration. Here's why: Soft ground is not ideal for anchor-type edging. Anchor-type edging is any edging that requires stakes, nails, poles, or any other anchoring device. What happens in soft ground is that these anchors slide easily into the soft ground and don't actually anchor anything.

When the ground shifts or objects press against the edging, it will tend to pull out of the ground. Of course, you can pound the anchors back in, but this is only a temporary measure. Anchored edging will chronically come loose in soft ground.

A better option for soft ground is a border with weight. Stone is ideal, but I have seen cut Wolmanized lumber make for a good alternative as well. Stone and wood will definitely cost more than a simple 'Black Diamond' style edging, but careful shopping and reasonable expectations will almost always allow for this option in any budget.

While anchor-type edging is convenient and simple to install, stone or wood has a unique set of requirements. Anchor-type edging is flexible and conforms to the curves and undulations of the ground, giving an almost 'organic' look. Stone and wood, however, are rigid and less amenable to rounded landscape beds.

Also, when using stone or wood, you must be clear about whether you are installing a border or erecting a wall. If you are only using one layer or material, you are installing a border. In this case, you do not need to worry about having a perfectly level border. The angle of the border should correspond to the angle of the ground it is bordering.

This can be a problem in hilly areas if you use cut stone borders, as cut stone borders rising and dropping precipitously can give a decidedly unprofessional appearance. Try uncut stone if there is a lot of drops and rises around the area you are bordering.

If you are building a border that is more than one layer, you are installing a wall. When doing this, ignore the angle of the ground and make sure that the stone is level. This may involve some heightened cost if your wall is bordering a hilly bed, as some of the stones will have to be buried, essentially out of view, to provide footing for the stone sections of a rise.

Another consideration is the ease of installation. Anchor-style edging is definitely simpler to install. All that is required is to dig a suitable trench, insert the edging, and drive in the anchors. If a piece is too long, it can be cut simply with a knife or small saw. This type of edging is an excellent option(provided your ground is firm) for those who want a simple installation.

One of the biggest difficulties that you will encounter with stone or wood edging is need to cut the materials. Wood of sufficient weight to be a landscape border can be cut, but it will be a bit of work. You will probably need to use a circular saw or a VERY sharp hand saw.

Stone, however, can be a beast to cut. Unless you want to rent a wet saw(which is not fun to operate in its own way), you can plan on a lot of time and frustration, as stone tends not to cut smoothly or necessarily right where you were hoping it would. The MINIMUM requirement for cutting stone is a masonry hammer or a small sledge and chisel.

Finally, once you have considered the issues of ground type, cost, and ease of installation, there is the aesthetic component. While the edging you use may or may not be the first thing that catches the eye, it does play a part in the overall appearance of your landscaping.

To summarize briefly, non-cut stone and anchored edging tend to give the bed a rustic look, which is a perfect accent to free-growing trees and shrubs along with a bedding such as shredded bark. The ability to smoothly border areas that twist and turn along with the dimensions of your yard is a perfect accent to the 'natural' look.

Cut stone and wood emphasize a more neat, urban look. While lacking the natural free form of other edgings, cut and well-installed edging can provide clean, sharp lines that can range from the functional to the dramatic. This look goes well with geometrically-trimmed shrubbery and colorful stone bedding.

There's more to installing landscape edging than you thought, isn't there? Don't worry, though, with a little planning, some smart shopping, and a little work your landscape edging can become a beautiful component of your landscaping.