How to stop grass growing on flower beds

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The best way to achieve a clean looking garden is to have well defined lawns and borders. However, unless you have well installed and robust edging this can be a challenge.

Grass has a remarkable ability to spread to neighbouring areas and colonise inhospitable ground. This typically results in grass creeping onto beds and flower borders blurring the boundaries between the two. 

​In this article I will explain how to stop grass growing and escaping onto flower beds. I will also list and summarise six lawn edgings to stop grass escaping onto borders. 

​Landscaping membrane

One of the best ways to stop grass growing inside flower borders is to surface them with landscaping membrane.

Not only will this membrane stop grass from growing, it will also prevent other weeds from establishing themselves. The membrane can be cut around existing plants and planting pockets created for new planting.

​However landscaping membrane should be covered by another medium such as gravel or bark chippings.   
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​Gravel

Gravel upon membrane can be a very effective way of suppressing grass and other weeds on borders.

Not only can the gravel suppress weeds it can also add interesting colours and textures within your landscaping. As gravel is a natural stone aggregate it can help to reflect sunlight and boost warm microclimates.

​This is particularly beneficial if you are trying to grow a greater range of plants or more exotic species. 
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​Mulching

Mulching typically involves spreading organic materials such as composted leaves and wood chip on planting beds.

Not only can this help fertilise soil and retain moisture but also prevent weed establishment. Mulch is usually spread directly on top of the soil to help condition the soil and boost soil life.

​However more decorative mulches such as pine bark and bark chippings can be spread on top of landscape membrane. This prevents the mulch from degrading too quickly and provides an extra barrier to weeds. 
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​5 Edgings to stop grass growing in flower beds

If you want to stop grass growing onto flower beds from lawns the best way is with garden edging.

​Some landscape edgings however are better than others at retaining grass and stopping it from spreading. Below I have listed five of the best edging materials to stop grass growing onto flowerbeds. 
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​1. Brick edging

​Brick edging has been one of the most favourite garden edgings over the decades. This is because bricks come in a wide variety of shapes, textures and colour tones.

Bricks can be laid in a variety of different arrangements and patterns making them very versatile. A very popular method of laying bricks as edging is to lay them in a soldier course. 

​This creates a robust and broad edging perfect for edging lawns and borders. The extra thick edging acts as a wide barrier to stop grass growing onto flower beds. 
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​2. Block paving

Block paving is a common paving material traditionally used to surface driveways and car ports. Due to block paving’s popularity it has become available in a broad variety of styles, sizes and colour tones.

This has consequently led to its adoption in other outdoor projects such as garden landscaping. Block paving has now become a popular edging materials for lawns and pathways.

​Like brick it is typically laid on cement mortar upon a compacted sub-base. This makes it a formidable barrier to grass attempting to grow from lawns to flower beds. 
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​3. Paving edging

Just as brick and block paving can be installed as garden edging so can conventional paving. The added benefit here is you can make your edging match your patio paving perfectly.

You can cut paving into linear slithers, brick shapes or even square setts. This gives you complete control over what design or affect you wish to create. It is advised to score some grip lines to the underside of your edgings with a grinder.

​This will enable your edgings to bond well to your mortar base. Paving prepared in this way will create robust edgings which prevent grass from growing on flower beds. 
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​4. Granite setts 

Granite setts have been a reliable building and surfacing material for millennia. Made from dense granite these cubes of stone are extremely weather resistant and durable.

Granite setts can easily be laid to form straight lines or curves making them very versatile. Their light colour tones make them an effective contrast for lawns and flower borders.

​Granite setts have an ability to work well with any garden design or style. This makes them an effective choice for garden edgings to lawns and flower borders. 
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​5. Metal garden edging

Flexible metal edging has become an extremely popular garden product for both straight and curved edgings.

These edgings are highly prized for their versatility and contemporary feel. Metal garden edgings are extremely effective for cleanly defining the edges of lawns borders and gravel surfaces.

​When used to edge lawns, their metal edge prevents grass from creeping onto borders and flower beds. 

Thank you for reading our article on how to stop grass growing on flower borders. If you require garden edging services please do not hesitate to contact us.

Based In Amersham, Buckinghamshire we undertake a wide range of garden landscaping services. 

​Below I will link to some other articles you may find useful. 

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