How to Create a Flower Bed Border
Flower beds offer color, texture and fragrance to a landscape. Creating a border for them provides a clean, defined look and helps protect flowers from children and pets at play. A border can tie in the look of your garden with the overall aesthetics of your house and outdoor seating areas. An elaborate border helps establish a flower bed as the focal point, while a simple border serves its purpose without detracting attention from your flowers. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Tape measure
- Brick, gravel or other stone materials
- Spade
- Sand
- Hammer or rubber mallet
- Level
- Hose
Instructions
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1
Measure the circumference of your garden to figure out how much material you need. If your garden is round, line the garden with a hose and measure the hose.
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2
Browse edging materials and border design ideas from a variety of gardening sources --- websites, books, magazines, etc. Decide if you want your border to look natural, grand or crafty. Creative design ideas include sinking empty wine or other glass bottles upside down, about 4 inches into the ground, or horizontal railroad ties for a rustic look.
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3
Purchase enough edging material to line your flower bed. If you want your border to retain soil and mulch, you'll need extra material to sink into the ground for stability.
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4
Use a spade to dig a trench about 2 inches wide and 6 inches deep for your border foundation. Skip this step if you want the border to sit flush with the flower bed's surface.
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5
Spread an inch of sand on the surface of the trench.
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Place the first brick or stone in the trench. Take a look at the brick from a few steps away to see if you are happy with the height. Add more sand if you want to raise the height.
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Set the bricks in place along the trench, leaving about half an inch between each brick. Press them firmly into the sand or tap them with a hammer or rubber mallet.
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Check that your border is even. Place a level or each side of your border.
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9
Use the soil you removed while digging the trench to fill in the gaps between each brick. Press the soil firmly until you can't move the bricks.
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10
Water the border enough to wet the soil in between so it grips the bricks when it dries and holds more firmly in place.
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Tips & Warnings
There are a variety of materials you can use to create a natural border around your flower bed. Extend the garden with a strip 6 inches wide. Cover the soil with wood chips, gravel or mulch, or plant short flowers like alyssum for colorful edging.
References
Resources
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