Adding Creative Brick Edging

  • 4-40 hours
  • Beginner
  • 75-500
What You'll Need
Trench shovel
Commercial wheelbarrow (it can be borrowed)
Concrete premix (use sacked concrete)
Curbing and Mason's trowel
Mortar mix
Mason line
Garden hoe
Bricks
What You'll Need
Trench shovel
Commercial wheelbarrow (it can be borrowed)
Concrete premix (use sacked concrete)
Curbing and Mason's trowel
Mortar mix
Mason line
Garden hoe
Bricks

Brick edging is a recommended method of giving your exterior landscape a neat and customized appearance. When building the edging, laying bricks in various patterns is a common practice. Garden edging designs are created to complement the garden space. Edging is often done without any mortar or other conventional constructional binding materials. Here, the bricks are simply laid together in a particular design, in a small trench-like space that is dug around the yard. After the bricks are laid, filling the trench with sand is recommended to secure the bricks. This is also useful in households that have kids. Injuries can be avoided if the kids fall on sanded brick edgings rather than bare ones. Since sand is a dense absorbent, it is efficient in breaking the fall.

The most common pattern for laying landscaped brick edging, is laying the bricks around the garden, driveway or the nearby pavements at angles of 45 degrees. The best and most durable edgings are made in the permanent format, i.e. using concrete to stabilize the bricks on the ground. Presence of mortar ensures the bricks won't move and wear-off due to frictional rubbing. This type of brick edging is commonly used when gardens are to be limited; the presence of concrete edgings prevents further spread of the garden grass.

:

Step 1 - Estimating Edging Area, Bricks

Measure and place the bricks to calculate how many bricks would be needed for completing one foot of edging. Now, multiply the length of the edging area by the total number of bricks needed to cover one foot of the edging space. This gives you an estimation of the total number of bricks that need to be ordered.

Note: when taking measurements include some extra edging space if there are curves in your landscape. For defining the edging area, you can use any leftover paint or just a string. Avoid too many sharp corners in the edging

    Step 2 - Dig the Trench

    Using the trench shovel, dig a 6-inch deep trench in the marked edging area. The dug trench should equal the width of the bottom edge of your shovel. For ensuring your trench’s depth, place one or two bricks in it.

    Step 3 - Set-Up the Mason Line

    Once the first few feet of the trench have been dug, hammer some wooden stakes at either side of the trench’s edges. Now, extend the mason line from one stake to the other. This is your reference line for the suitable brick height.

    Step 4 - Mix the Concrete

    Pour the concrete premix into the wheelbarrow. Read the instructions on the concrete sack and add the required amount of water. Thoroughly mix the concrete mix using the shovel. Your finished concrete mix should be of uniform thickness without any water at the surface.

    Step 5 - Add Concrete to Trench

    Using the shovel, add some concrete to the dug trench. Fill the trench to its top edge.

    Step 6 - Smooth Concrete in Trench

    With the trowel, smoothen the top surface of the concreted trench.

    Step 7 - Let Concrete Dry

    The concreted trench has to be left alone to dry for two days with intermittent water spraying. This is called, curing the concrete.

    Step 8 - Mix Mortar

    Pour the mortar mix into the wheelbarrow. Thoroughly mix it with water to make a paste that can be spread with a shovel.

    Step 9 - Assemble Brick Edging

    Using the shovel, pour 2 inches of mortar mix on top of the cured concrete. Pick a brick and apply about 1-to-2 inches of mortar on one end. Press the brick on the concrete. Squeeze out the excess mortar with the trowel.

    Depending upon how firm you want the edging to be, you can coat either one or both ends of the bricks with mortar. Coating on both sides is recommended for protecting against water seepage.

    Step 10 - Repeat the Process

    Repeat the process of mashing one coated brick against the other, until the edging is completed.