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Crisp & Tidy

May 13th, 2015

AH, I love a crisp edge. In my gardens in Ohio I always made sure to edge all my flowerbeds each spring. It’s a little like spring cleaning in the garden, everything just looks so much neater afterwards.
edged_flowerbeds
I realized this weekend that this might be the reason I feel like this garden is a little unruly. So I started edging a new garden area that I’m making.
crisp garden edge 1
Last year I found this fantastic vintage edger at Liberty Tool. It’s perfect for this task, much easier to use than a shovel and much nicer than other edging tools I’ve tried to use. It’s worth far more than the few dollars I paid for it.
crisp garden edge 2
You know, it worked. Instantly the garden felt a little less unkempt and things really look much more tended. I’ve got my work cut out for me edging around the two apple trees in front. Hopefully I can get a big truckload of beautifully black compost to use as mulch and then the gardens will look completely new.

Do you like the edge your garden beds?

10 Comments to “Crisp & Tidy”
  1. Emily on May 13, 2015 at 5:46 am

    Yes, I do! And I really need to get out there and get it down. Even a weedy area looks neater if it is edged.

    Reply to Emily's comment

  2. bonnie knox on May 13, 2015 at 8:01 am

    Sometimes. But with all the bermuda grass around here, it’s mostly an exercise in futility.

    Reply to bonnie knox's comment

  3. Erika on May 13, 2015 at 8:57 am

    Edging is something I really struggle with. What does the great vintage edger look like?

    Reply to Erika's comment

    • Susy on May 13, 2015 at 8:49 pm

      I’ll have to post photos of it, maybe a Friday Favorite!

      Reply to Susy's comment

  4. Deb on May 13, 2015 at 9:00 am

    Not not really, no time for that with growing veggies and such. I do try once yr. to get things weeded but with over a dozen flower/herb beds I have no time for that type of thing. most important is growing and preserving food. Making a nice edge is unimportant in the scheme of things and no one comes to our house except our kids anyway so no big deal. I have over 2 doz. fruit trees and certainly no time for edging and such. Weed whacking 6 times/year is about all they get but are doing fine.

    Reply to Deb's comment

  5. Egon on May 13, 2015 at 11:00 am

    Yes, maybe a little too much. I like keeping the edge deep and wide enough so that grass (mainly weeds) doesn’t make it over to the garden beds.

    Reply to Egon's comment

  6. KimH on May 13, 2015 at 6:00 pm

    I like them edged.. but that doesnt mean they are. ;) I’ve got to get my few here at my house done soon..

    I’ve got a flat edged shovel that I use to edge.. it works great!

    Reply to KimH's comment

  7. Sarah on May 13, 2015 at 6:25 pm

    I do love my gardens edged as well!!
    Wondering if you put down anything in between the soil and your compost like newspapers or landscaping fabric to try and keep the weeds at bay?
    Thanks,
    Sarah

    Reply to Sarah's comment

    • Susy on May 13, 2015 at 8:49 pm

      If I’m trying to smother things I put down cardboard, but for the most part I just put down a thick layer of compost and it keeps the weed seeds from germinating.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  8. Nebraska Dave on May 14, 2015 at 9:15 am

    Susy, ha, in my mind I see the garden tidy and well kept. During the winter months, I plan for picture perfect garden paths and beds but when it comes out in reality some thing happens to the weed free garden that was in my mind. Spring moisture causes the weeds and grass to grow ever so much faster than anticipated so right now the garden is in a wee bit of shabbiness. I keep working at it and maybe by the fall it just might look like a well kept garden. …. Well, maybe not but there’s always next winter when thoughts return of weed free gardens for the Spring.

    Have a great Crisp Tidy garden day.

    Reply to Nebraska Dave's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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