Fine Lines: Landscape Installation

Landscape edging functions best if it fools the human eye. Because edging is not part of the natural environment, the less that can be seen, the better, according to suppliers and landscape contractors.

Still, contractors fuss over which type of edging to use for a job. The debate continues about which type – plastic, metal or concrete – is most durable, cost effective, safe and easy to install. Mostly, contractors report they choose an edging product based on job site and personal preference.

There are advantages and disadvantages to each type of landscape edging. Despite clashing opinions on the different types, manufacturers and contractors agree that proper installation is the key to success using any product. “Edging is an odd product,” said Larry Olson, president, Oly-Ola Sales, Villa Park, Ill. “When edging is installed poorly, it doesn’t matter what you use.”

EDGING APPLICATIONS. Most contractors use landscape edging to divide grass from a planting area, explained Howard Rynberk, president of Valley View, Crestwood, Ill. “I have also seen edging used as a means of holding mulch around the tree base or in gardens,” Rynberk said.

Edging’s original use was to form flower beds, according to Joe Dragan, executive vice president of Col-Met in Dallas, Texas. Today, landscape edging is also used for restraining pavement, forming concrete and holding patio stone and pavers in place.

Generally, edging should be functional as opposed to simply aesthetic, Olson said. “Edging separates turf from any other mixture, like bark, stone or mulches,” he added. “It’s a simple barrier.”

PRODUCT BREAKDOWN. Among landscape contractors, there is no consensus on the best product to use for every application. The decision is personal – and more often – based on location. For example, Olson said concrete edging isn’t used in the North as frequently as in the Southwest and Southeast because cold weather makes the product more susceptible to cracking. In Texas and Colorado, Rynberk added, steel edging is used more frequently because the soil is hard and steel goes into the ground easily with a sledgehammer.

Plastic, metal (steel and aluminum) and concrete edging have distinct advantages and disadvantages.

Plastic, or polyethylene. Plastic edging may last up to 20 years – as long as steel and longer than concrete, Rynberk said. Poly is also relatively inexpensive. The cost ranges from 30 cents to $1.10 per foot for certain poly edgings, Olson said.

Poly’s biggest advantage is safety. Adults, pets and children won’t cut themselves if they fall on plastic edging, Olson said. Pedestrians have a greater risk of injury if they fall on steel edging that is not protected with plastic stripping.

Yet, black plastic edging purchased at chain stores tends to be poor material, especially if installed improperly, Olson said. Power equipment can easily damage the edging. “If you hit black plastic edging with a weed eater, the edging is history,” added Robert Pettengill, vice president, Designers Edge, Oklahoma City, Okla.

Occasionally, in low areas, poly edging will frost heave, explained Al Lang, president of Greenleaf Landscapes in Marietta, Ohio. But overall, Lang said he has had success using poly edging. “We’ve had very few problems, even with material that has been in 12 to 15 years,” Lang said.

Metal. While the ground may occasionally spit plastic out, it will not reject steel, Dragan said, adding that contractors get 15 to 20 years use out of steel edging. On the other hand, Rynberk said, plastic may last equally as long, but steel may start rusting.

Steel and aluminum edgings are more expensive than plastic, but not as expensive as concrete. On average, steel costs $1.50 to $4 per foot, depending on size and thickness, Olson reported. Aluminum edging ranges from $1.20 to $5 a foot based on size, thickness or color, he added. The costs may vary, though, depending on factors like freight, weather and geography.

Dragan said steel edging makes yard trimming easier. “You can bang against steel edging without hurting it,” he said. “Plastic and cement will chip and fall apart.”

Still, if a mower hits steel edging, dangerous fragments may go flying, Rynberk said. Also, if contractors handle the edging without wearing gloves, they risk cutting themselves. “And almost always, kids find steel edging,” Rynberk added. “It’s a liability.”

Dragan denied that steel edging is a serious safety hazard to humans and animals. “There have been rare instances of people getting cut,” he said. “We offer a final trim cap for the top of the edging. You can jump up and down on it and not get hurt.”

Despite potential safety hazards, steel edging is a best seller in Dallas. “You would be hard-pressed to find a house or business without steel edging,” Dragan said.

Concrete. Concrete barriers are for people who want to see them, said Tony Cooper, owner and operator of Southern Landscape Curbing in Statesboro, Ga. His machine that lays concrete edging can scribe a brick pattern, and Pettengill said his can form a variety of shapes and colors.

Cooper said concrete edging has good lasting power if concrete sand, instead of masonry, is used to make the mix. “Concrete sand has a fine aggregate that makes the mix stronger,” Cooper said. “When I first started, I did masonry sand, and the edging would chip some.”

Concrete edging may last four to five years, Rynberk estimated. The edging has a tendency to chip and heave, he added.

Concrete is the most expensive of the three types of edging, and cost hinges on color, texture or region of the country. Pettengill said he charges $4 a foot for plain concrete edging. Cooper charges $3.25 per linear foot and 75 cents more per foot for color.

KEYS TO INSTALLATION. Techniques for proper installation vary depending on the type of edging and manufacturer. In addition, contractors have their own tricks of the trade.

According to Rynberk, the trench makes up 85 percent of the labor. “Make sure you dig the trench deep enough,” he advised, “and use enough stakes, especially where you are joining two pieces together.” The trench should be dug anywhere from 3 to 5 inches deep, depending on the type and size of edging used.

Dig the trench a little deeper than necessary, said Steve Sztapka, owner of Wettlecreek Nursery/Landscape in Morris, Ill. Sztapka also recommends using a level to keep the edging straight.

Equipment is available to dig trenches, but some contractors only use machinery for big jobs – for example, laying 1,000 to 2,000 feet of edging, Rynberk said. The machines can be rented, but in most cases, he said contractors are still using the old-fashioned hand and shovel method.

Lang said he uses the trenching machine when he installs poly edging. “You have to make sure the cut is vertical and at least 5 inches deep,” he said. “In low areas, where water may collect, we double up on the horizontal pins that are driven through the edging so the product doesn’t heave out of the ground.”

To form a straight line with edging, dig a proper straight trench, Olson recommended, and overlap the edging to stop loose connections. Sztapka said by overlapping wherever the connections are, they become even stronger points. Overlapping also eliminates ugly separations in the edging, he added.

According to Col-Met’s guide to installing steel edging, contractors should lay out the landscape edging plan on the ground with a tight line for the straight line portions. When planning, allow for an 8-inch loss in each piece’s length for the overlap connection.

Then, cut a narrow trench about 3 inches deep along the line where edging will be installed. Shape each section of edging to conform to the trench line and install in the trench by making the overlap connections and tapping the stakes partially into the ground through the full length of the edging plan. Tap down the stakes in succession along the line, a little at a time, and repeat until the stakes are flush with the top of the edging and the edging is about halfway into the ground. When properly installed, the top of the edging should be about level with the cut grass and barely visible from the grass side of the bed.

To install concrete edging, Cooper uses a sod cutter to cut a strip around flower beds, removes the sod and returns with his machine. He mixes concrete on the trailer and feeds it to the machine, which extrudes the concrete. “I keep the machine level and steer it around the areas the machine needs to go,” Cooper said. Although the machine is small, Cooper said in tight areas, some hand work is necessary.

Ultimately, no matter what edging product contractors select, doing the job right is key to lasting power in the landscape. “What we do is simple,” Olson said, “not brain surgery or tissue cultures to make new species. There is a right and wrong way to install edging, and it’s quite a drag to keep doing it wrong over and over.”

The author is Associate Editor of Lawn & Landscape magazine.

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