How to Edge Brick Walkways

Brick paths are prone to shifting, losing their patterns if not edged.

Brick walkways give a finished, formal look to landscape projects. They invite visitors to follow them to a doorway, gateway, arbor or patio. Strong and durable, brick has rough, sometimes sharp edges. A patterned brick walkway is prone to shift out of place if it is not secured. Some home landscapers choose to edge their brick walkways with additional angled brick to give their paths a seamless appearance. Others prefer buried wood planks, covered with gravel, soil, mulch and plantings, for edging their brick walkways.

Things You'll Need

• Gloves
• Work boots
• Shovel
• Builder's sand
• Rake
• Bricks
• Wood boards
• Rubber mallet
• Pea gravel
• Mulch

Instructions

Angled Brick Edge

1. Excavate a narrow border next to your brick walkway. Make the border just wide enough to comfortably hold a brick turned on its side.

2. Shovel builder's sand into the excavation. Work in sections about 3 feet long.

3. Smooth the sand with the back of a rake-head. Wedge a matching brick at an angle into the sand until its pointed top is about the level you desire it to be.

4. Lay additional bricks in the sand until you've completed edging the first section of walkway. Add sand to the next section, and repeat the process.

Wood Board and Mulch Edge

1. Dig a narrow trench next to your brick walkway. The trench should be about 2 inches deeper than your walkway.

2. Lay treated wood boards lengthwise in the trench. Tamp down hard with a rubber mallet until board is secure. Press the boards until they are nearly touching the edges of the walkway bricks.

3. Add a shovel of pea gravel to the trench to aid drainage. Pour builder's sand into the trench atop the gravel. Fill in any spaces between the board and bricks with gravel and sand.

4. Replace the excavated soil until the trench is even with the walkway. Tamp down firmly until the trench is solid. Cover the trench with mounded mulch.

Tips & Warnings

• Tuck some scented ground cover into the mounded mulch next to your brick walkway. The plants will give off a gentle fragrance as visitors brush by them.

• Use pine needle mulch if you're mounding a walkway on a slope. The needles are less likely to be washed away in heavy rains.

References

• HGTV: Walkways
• Plant Care: Walkway Design
• Reliable Remodeler: Liven up Your Landscape