How to Do Concrete Edging
Concrete edging is a way to create borders around your lawn, garden and flowerbeds while giving your home's exterior a nicely manicured appearance. Concrete edging paver stones or blocks can be purchased from home improvement stores and come in a wide variety of styles. Edging blocks are designed to create curvilinear edging as will as straight edging. Concrete edging blocks link together with a basic tongue and groove system. With a few basic tools, installing concrete edging is a job that can easily be done on your own. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Concrete edging blocks
- Sand
- Shovel
- Flat spade
- Garden shovel
- Mallet
- 2 x 4
Instructions
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1
Plan your layout. Place your edging blocks on the ground where you want the edging.
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2
Score the outline of the edging by slicing the ground with a flat spade along both sides of the blocks. Set the blocks aside.
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3
Dig a trench for the edging. Make the trench the same depth as the blocks. Start the trench by roughly digging it up with a shovel, then square it off with a flat spade and/or a trenching shovel. Use a hand held garden shovel to dig the trench if you are using small blocks and need only a shallow trench. Make the bed of the trench as flat and even as possible. Tamp the bed down by running a 2 x 4 along and tapping on the top of the 2 x 4 with a mallet.
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4
Lay 1 to 2 inches of sand in the bed of the trench. Tamp the sand down with the board and mallet. Lightly spray the bed with water to help it settle.
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5
Insert the blocks into the trench. Start in the corners if you are making straight edging. Some types of edging have special blocks for corners. Connect the blocks together by putting tongues into grooves. Set a level across the top of the blocks as you work to ensure that they are even. Scoop out or add sand as needed to make adjustments. Tamp down the blocks with the 2 x 4 and mallet.
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6
Line one side of the edging with hammer-in plastic garden edging to help keep in the soil and mulch of flowerbeds and gardens. This is an optional step.
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7
Fill in any gaps along the sides of the edging with sand or soil.
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