Charlie Albone: Many people overlook their garden’s edge, but defining the lines will make a real difference

The smallest of items in a garden can have a big impact and one you may overlook is your garden’s edges. Having a physical barrier between your lawns, garden beds and paved areas will not only keep your areas visually separated, but also lower the need for maintenance. Edging between your lawn and garden is vital to prevent the root system of your lawn from accessing the more nutrient-rich garden beds. Lawns with an underground root system, such as couch, are an absolute shocker to remove from a garden bed once they have crossed the line so ensure whatever type of garden edging you use it is buried at least 10cm below ground level. I would also have it protruding above your lawn by 50mm to prevent the jump happing here too. Grass that grows from overground runners, such as buffalo, are easier to pull up and less likely to grow under an edge, but a physical barrier will make the job of removing them much easier. A 5cm protrusion here will allow for easy line trimming, giving a crisp and professional edge. If you are growing any plant with a vigorous root system, say a clumping bamboo or even a giant bird of paradise, then you will need a root barrier buried deep — up to 50cm for some species — to prevent unwanted spreading. (Note: please do not plant running bamboo under in any circumstance!) If you want something more ornamental above the ground, use a thick plastic barrier, ensuring the join between the two is watertight or the whole job becomes redundant. A good option for this is two separate edges, the more attractive on the outside of the root barrier. You can make your garden edging a feature of the garden and a great way to reinforce a theme or create an atmosphere. Bricks, stone and cobbles can be used for traditional spaces — laid on end or lengthways — to adapt to most spaces and dimensions. Contemporary spaces look great with slimline flexible steel. It has the ability to create straight lines and curves and can be used throughout a design for a feeling of cohesiveness. When installing edging don’t scrimp on the fixing system such as the base or the pegs. A sturdy base for stone finishes will hold your edging in good stead when you knock up against it with a lawn mower or wheelbarrow. When using steel edging, more pegs is better than less for this reason, but don’t over-peg it when installing curves as this will give a staggered look rather than one smooth line. If you don’t want to make a feature of your edging and simply want it for practical reasons then cost-effective treated pine will do the trick. You can leave this to age naturally or pre-stain it in a dark charcoal colour before installation so it disappears from the moment it goes in. Edging doesn’t have to be used just on your gardens and lawns. Highlighting paved areas will add an extra layer of detail that will really elevate you garden design. Running a band of cobbles, or perhaps a feature stone, or even just a different format of the same stone around the edge of a paved area will be a bit of extra work but will make a huge difference to the overall look of your space. If you are the type of gardener who loves to plan (I am), then running a garden or lawn edge into an edge of a paved area to combine the two spaces will really make your garden look like it was designed by a professional.