How To Edge A Lawn By Hand-Your Grass Will Love It!

April 20, 2018

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If you love your lawn, like I do, you want it to look it's best at all times. Sometimes it becomes a little shaggy and needs some work. Hiring a landscape company to work on your yard is a great idea, but a lot of people (like myself) like to do it themselves. It saves money and gives you a great sense of accomplishment. Today, I am going to show you how to edge a lawn by hand.

How To Edge A Lawn By Hand
man clearing the edge of his lawn's sidewalk

Benefits of Edging Your Lawn

Edging your lawn is something that everyone should do. It may take some time out of your day, but it really is an easy job. Your lawn will love it. Here are some benefits of edging your yard:

  • It looks great- A yard that has just been edged really looks great. It offers great curb appeal in case you are looking to sell your house. One of the first things a potential buyer sees is your yard. A well kept yard goes a long way for a potential buyer driving by your house. It can increase the value of your house without costing a lot of money and without a lot of effort.
  • It creates a barrier between your lawn and garden or other areas- If you have a garden, flower bed or other area, the last thing you want is grass and weeds invading it! Proper edging provides the barrier that prevents this so you are not constantly weeding your garden or flower bed around the edges. It also prevents the mulch, seeds and soil in the garden from spilling over into the lawn.
  • It makes it easier to mow or trim- Having a nice, clean edge on your grass makes it easier to mow or trim. It gives you a nice visual line so you know where to mow or trim up to. The last thing you need to do is mow or trim over your garden or flower bed!!

Tools Needed To Edge Your Lawn

Here are the tools needed to edge your lawn by hand. Some of the tools can either be replaced with other tools or not used. This is just how I do it.

  • Spray paint- use this to mark where you want to edge. This gives you a great guide to use.
  • Square garden spade or a half moon edger- you can use either one of these to do your edging. Some people like the square garden spade like THIS ONE. A lot of people use a half moon edger like THIS ONEEither one will work to give you a clean, straight edge.
  • Wheelbarrow- Some people like to toss the grass and dirt back in the garden or other area. I like to put the dug up dirt, grass, sticks or rocks into a wheelbarrow and discard it somewhere else.
  • Gloves- make sure you have a good pair of gloves. Especially if you have a big edging job. They really help prevent blisters.
  • Heavy Duty Shoes or Work Boots- you need a good pair of work boots because it makes it easier to push the edging tool down into the ground.

How To Edge A Lawn By Hand

Now that I have talked about the tools needed and the benefits of edging your lawn, it's time to get down to the actual edging. Here are the steps on how to edge your lawn by hand.

  1. First spray a line that you want to edge. Please make sure you think this out before hand. Don't keep changing your mind and have spray painted lines all over your yard. Put some thought into it before you start.
  2. Take your edging tool, put it on spray painted line, and push it down with your foot. Ideally, you want a 90 degree angle down about 4 inches. Please be careful of electrical wires or anything else underground!
  3. After you push the edging tool in the ground, rock the tool backwards to pick up the dirt and grass. I like to throw the dirt and grass in the wheelbarrow at this step. Some people leave it in the garden or other space for later.
  4. Repeat step 3 all along your spray painted line until you are done. You will have to clean up some excess dirt, rocks or grass out of your edge with your tool.
  5. If you haven't cleaned up the excess dirt, grass or rocks from step 3, this is a good time to do it. Either pick up the excess grass, rocks or dirt by hand or with a shovel and put it in the wheelbarrow.
  6. Admire your work!!!

That is basically how you edge your yard by hand. Here is a great video showing you how to do it.

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my article on how to edge a lawn by hand. Please feel free to leave a comment.

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