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Flower borders provide some much loved greenery and colour into our gardens. However, very often, there is a need to install garden edging to create more defined growing areas
This is to reduce the encroachment of grass from lawns and help retain soil and mulch. In this article I will list and describe the very best garden edging for flower borders on the market. What is the best garden edging for around flower beds?
The best edging for around flower borders will be both durable and weather resistant. It will also be wide enough to prevent grass encroachment and retain mulches and gravels. Below I have listed some of the most effective flower bed edging which sits flush at ground level. This is the most favoured type of edging for where borders meet lawn. This is because the flush edging creates an easy mowing edge. Block edging
Block edging comes in many forms but is commonly a concrete block designed for driveways. Block paving comes in many shapes, colours and styles and is perfect for garden edging. Such block pavers are great for laying flush edging along the boundaries of lawns and flower beds. Block edging creates effective mowing strips which can also retain gravels and bark. Why not read ourstep by step guide on laying block paving as edging here. 
Brick edging
Bricks, like block paving can create very effective edgings to flower borders. Bricks can be laid as border edging in a number of ways. The most popular way is a soldier course laid flush with the ground. This can also create the perfect, mowing edge, strip, providing plenty of overhang for lawn mowers. Bricks can also be laid half submerged vertically or at an angle to create different edging effects. 
Timber edging
Timber can also be utilised to create garden edging in a variety of ways. For straight and rigid edging, sleepers or 6x2 timber is typically installed to edge flower borders. For curved edgings treated, timber, gravel boards are a more favoured choice. These boards can be levered into position with bars and fixed to timber pegs driven deep into subsoil. Gravel boards can create a thin and inconspicuous timber edging for flower borders like in the example below. 
Metal edging
Flexible metal edging has now become a very popular garden edging for flowerbeds. The thin, metallic, edging can create a modern and contemporary feel to any garden. These edgings are easy to connect into long lengths and easy to work into any shape. One of the most effective brands on the market is Core edge flexible metal edging.   Flexi border
Flexi border is a rubber based, garden edging product, made from recycled tyres. This robust but flexible edging is perfect for edging flower borders. The edging is slightly raised to accommodate bark chippings, mulch and gravels. It can be pegged into position meaning no costly excavation or concrete base installation.   Best retaining edging for flower beds
The best garden edging for flower beds is not always flush with the surrounding surfaces. Very often, flowerbed edging provides a junction between two, varying, surface levels. This means the edging will need to be strong enough to help retain soil or other materials. Therefore, here I will list and describe the best retaining edging for flower borders. 
Spiked border log roll
Spiked log roll edging is a flexible edging ideal for bordering the front of flowerbeds. The edging has an attractive and orderly aesthetic and is easy to install. Although the edging will retain a very shallow depth of soil it will not retain more than 50mm efficiently. Bear in mind this edging will degrade after around 15 years.   Kerb edgings
Kerb edgings come in many shapes and styles and can look very effective around flower borders. These kerbs are robust and are suitable for retaining a greater depth of topsoil. However, kerbs will need to be bedded on a strong mortar mix onto a robust, concrete or compacted hardcore sub-base. 
Concrete path edgings
Concrete path edgings also come in many colours and styles but are always similar in shape. These long, rectangular, edgings are perfect for edging straight paths and flower borders. Their long and horizontal profile makes them easy to haunch into position with strong mortar or concrete. These edgings however are not effective at retaining large quantities of soil. They are also not suitable for curves or organic shapes. 
Sleeper edging
Timber sleepers are a strong and durable material and very popular edging for planting beds. Sleepers are typically fixed to treated timber posts concreted into the ground. The sleepers are also set in under the soil level so they form a robust retaining edge. The only drawback is this sleeper edging method is only good for straight borders. If you want curvy sleeper edging, you will need to cut them into sections and set them in vertically. This can be achieved by excavating a linear trench and concreting in the sleepers like posts. Each sleeper can be gently rotated to form a gentle curve to flower borders. However, forming curves with sleepers vertically is much more labour intensive and expensive. 
Brick wall edging
Building low retaining brick walls is one of the most durable methods of building retaining flower bed edging. Bricks can also be laid to pretty much any shape including different angles and curves. With so many different styles of bricks to choose from, they can pretty much match any garden style. Just be prepared that building any type of retaining brickwork is often costly. The brickwork will need a robust concrete foundation and required skilled labour for a neat finish. 
Thank you for reading our article on the best garden edging for flower borders. If you require garden edging installation including brickwork, paving or timber edge construction, do not hesitate to contact us.
Our landscaping services cover much of Buckinghamshire including; Amersham, Aylesbury, Bovingdon, Chalfont, Chesham, Hyde Heath, Great Missenden, Princes Risborough, High Wycombe, Penn, Beaconsfield, Tring, Gerrard's Cross and Denham. Below I will link to some of our other edging articles you may find relevant.
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