garden edging
- Thread starter kylie500
- Start date
Sick in bed last night and watching TV the ground force ? guy suggested a spade edge, you simply dig a trench separating the lawn and the garden.
Use the flat side of the spade for the lawn side of the trench and at a 45 degree angle for the garden bed.
Seemed to look ok, he commented thats what be used in his own garden. I wouldnt use it myself but its up to you...
Use the flat side of the spade for the lawn side of the trench and at a 45 degree angle for the garden bed.
Seemed to look ok, he commented thats what be used in his own garden. I wouldnt use it myself but its up to you...
For a minimalist look you can buy rolls (Nylex I think) of green or black plastic garden edging. It is intended to be buried. Its only real function is as a weed barrier to some degree. It gives a similar look to using a spade to cut the edge.
I wouldn't recommend the Nylex plastic edging. The problem with it is that within a year or so it can start to take on the wavy look due to exposure to the heat of the sun, and that makes it look rather cheap and nasty.
The only time I would use the plastic edging of any description, is when it is hidden from view, eg. to keep soil from entering a neigbouring property along the fenceline. This way you won't actually have the edging exposed on your side and so when it does get curly due to stresses of soil pressure and sun exposure, you won't know about it
The spade approach suggested by XBenX can look very good and I can't think of too many negatives. Except that you do have to whipper snip around it since you won't be able to get the mower close enough to the edge. But that's nothing unusual in a garden. The other negative is that if your lawn is the runner grass variety, then the grass will constantly invade the garden bed due to lack of barrier.
The option of using concrete kerb can get expensive if it is a long stretch.
On balance, spade edging sounds good and looks good given the low cost.
The only time I would use the plastic edging of any description, is when it is hidden from view, eg. to keep soil from entering a neigbouring property along the fenceline. This way you won't actually have the edging exposed on your side and so when it does get curly due to stresses of soil pressure and sun exposure, you won't know about it
The spade approach suggested by XBenX can look very good and I can't think of too many negatives. Except that you do have to whipper snip around it since you won't be able to get the mower close enough to the edge. But that's nothing unusual in a garden. The other negative is that if your lawn is the runner grass variety, then the grass will constantly invade the garden bed due to lack of barrier.
The option of using concrete kerb can get expensive if it is a long stretch.
On balance, spade edging sounds good and looks good given the low cost.
I went to a river and threw a whole lot of rocks in the boot and used them for my garden edging. I dug a shallow trench around the edge of the garden and put them in that.
Apparently it suppose to be illegal to take rocks from the river (and sand from the beach) but I didn't get arrested!
QB
Apparently it suppose to be illegal to take rocks from the river (and sand from the beach) but I didn't get arrested!
QB
It is definitely illegal to take rocks from rivers or the bush. Lets give nature a chance, shall we? After all, we are more than a little overbearing most of the time. Humanity 10000: Nature: 0
If you still want to use rocks, you can buy them at landscaping supplies yards. However, it can be a costly option
Or maybe get them direct from quarries , if you are not too far from one. This is probably cheaper than obtaining them from a retailer. And very legal
If you still want to use rocks, you can buy them at landscaping supplies yards. However, it can be a costly option
Or maybe get them direct from quarries
, if you are not too far from one. This is probably cheaper than obtaining them from a retailer. And very legal 
Okay, how about buying secondhand solid bricks and laying them into a mortar bed to form a mowing strip? Not mega-cheap, but might be a reasonable solution.
Hi kylie500,
We recently built 39 lineal metres of limestone wall at the reno we have just completed, between 1.8m and 2.0m high. The blocks were 500mm x 350mm x 200mm. To construct the piers, we needed to cut around 100mm off the long end of around 60 of the blocks. These cut-off blocks were then used to retain around 15m of garden beds
Now that we have built our walls, we "see" limestone walls all over the place (like the way you see your own car on the roads!)...and we also see properties that are about to have the walls built, evidence being a whole lot of pallots full of limestone blocks out the front of a house.
Maybe you could knock on the door of some of these places and offer to take away their off-cuts free of charge....all in the name of recycling of course!!
Good hunting
Glenn
We recently built 39 lineal metres of limestone wall at the reno we have just completed, between 1.8m and 2.0m high. The blocks were 500mm x 350mm x 200mm. To construct the piers, we needed to cut around 100mm off the long end of around 60 of the blocks. These cut-off blocks were then used to retain around 15m of garden beds
Now that we have built our walls, we "see" limestone walls all over the place (like the way you see your own car on the roads!)...and we also see properties that are about to have the walls built, evidence being a whole lot of pallots full of limestone blocks out the front of a house.
Maybe you could knock on the door of some of these places and offer to take away their off-cuts free of charge....all in the name of recycling of course!!
Good hunting
Glenn
Egding
Hi. We have used treated pine sleepers, with a 75x75mm x 12" long post at each "butt joint". You can buy special screws that justscrew straight in, and last for yonks. If you get the right treated pine, it lasts for ages in the ground (I think its called "H4" or something like that - ask the timber guy).
Fairly cheap if you get a reasonable price on the sleepers (ask for seconds or whatever...), and fast, easy tough etc.
I did my home this way as well - looks good.
Hi. We have used treated pine sleepers, with a 75x75mm x 12" long post at each "butt joint". You can buy special screws that justscrew straight in, and last for yonks. If you get the right treated pine, it lasts for ages in the ground (I think its called "H4" or something like that - ask the timber guy).
Fairly cheap if you get a reasonable price on the sleepers (ask for seconds or whatever...), and fast, easy tough etc.
I did my home this way as well - looks good.
Couple of dirt cheap ideas:
1. 15 cm deep and 15 cm wide trench filled with concrete (this is 72 buckets of concrete). For the top finish:
a. Oxide of your favourite colour rubbed into wet concrete surface
b. Your favourite pebbles spilled over the wet concrete and lightly tapped into concrete surface
c. painted by any exterior paint after concrete is dry
2. Old roof tiles (sold at $1 each at demolition yards) buried partly into the ground, high pressure cleaned and painted into your favorite colour
3. Shallow trench (5cm deep) thoroughly soaked with used motor oil to prevent anything from either lawn or garden to run into it and then packed with the coloured mulch (pine bark, chipped terracota tiles, coloured pebbles, etc)
1. 15 cm deep and 15 cm wide trench filled with concrete (this is 72 buckets of concrete). For the top finish:
a. Oxide of your favourite colour rubbed into wet concrete surface
b. Your favourite pebbles spilled over the wet concrete and lightly tapped into concrete surface
c. painted by any exterior paint after concrete is dry
2. Old roof tiles (sold at $1 each at demolition yards) buried partly into the ground, high pressure cleaned and painted into your favorite colour
3. Shallow trench (5cm deep) thoroughly soaked with used motor oil to prevent anything from either lawn or garden to run into it and then packed with the coloured mulch (pine bark, chipped terracota tiles, coloured pebbles, etc)
