Landscape Edging: Not Just for Gardens
When you think of adding edging to your landscaping, you normally think of gardens. Edging, however, can also be used around patios, driveways, and walkways. We’ve discussed landscape edging options before, so after a quick recap, we’ll discuss where to place the edging.
Landscape Edging Options
Plastic:
Plastic edging is fairly popular, though it is perhaps the least attractive of the options. Especially if you’re edging along a curved line or on a slope, its flexibility makes it a good option.
Steel & Aluminum:
Metal edging is more inflexible than plastic, but can provide the same clean separation between lawn and garden or hardscape. It does require some labor to dig out a trench for the installation.
Natural Stone:
Stone helps give your yard a more natural feel, adding character to landscaped edges. It is the most expensive of the options, due to the cost of the stones themselves and even more labor (digging a wide trench and ensuring stones are level), but can really tie together your yard and hardscapes.
Hardscapes
Hardscapes, as the name implies, include any large hard surface in your yard, including patios, driveways, and walkways. Natural stone meshes well with these landscape design elements. One decorative edging method is to lay them flush with the existing pavers or concrete to outline edges. You won’t get any additional height benefit this way, but it will provide a color contrast for visual interest. When it comes to patios, stick with decorative edging—you don’t want to trip on a lip of stone!
Bricks or other stone can be installed to provide a raised edge for driveways or walkways. This is useful, for example, if you have a problem with people parking off the driveway and into the grass. A raised edge can also be more effective in keeping landscape elements separated. Physically, for example, the edging can keep mulch in garden beds and off your driveway or walkway. Visually, edging provides a line of contrast between lawn, driveway, walkway, and garden beds. Using edging around hardscapes in your front yard can also help increase curb appeal. Even from the street, it’ll be clear that there are clean lines of separation. It looks neat and tidy up close, too, a big step toward making visitors feel welcome.
A raised edge can also be made using steel edging. It’s designed to stick out of the ground a couple inches, which, like the stone, provides a very clear line between hardscape and lawn. It’s also easy to maintain—just keep the grass around it trimmed. You may need to exercise a little more caution around steel edging, as it blends in more with the landscape around it. For this reason, steel edging is more suited to walkway/garden bed edging than driveway edging. After all, driveway edging should be obvious to prevent people from driving over it.
Gardens
Any kind of edging can be used in gardens; it all depends what kind of look you’re going for. Paver stones or brick will give more of a homey look to your garden beds. This is perfect if you’re going for an informal or cottage-style look. As discussed above, using plastic, steel, or aluminum edging will give a clear, clean demarcation between mulch and your lawn. For one example of how steel edging can be used in gardens to keep grass out, check out this video from This Old House
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When making your choice, take into account the shape of your garden bed, where the bed is located (whether it’s going to feature prominently in your yard and whether it’s on a slope), what sort of design aesthetic you’re aiming for, and your budget. Whichever kind of edging you decide upon, it can help keep mulch in your garden beds and the grass out.
Trying to decide if your hardscapes or garden beds need landscape edging? You can trust the experts at KG Landscape to lead you in the right direction. Give us a call at 763-568-7251 or use our quote system to get in touch today.
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When Pergolas Don’t Last, There’s Always a Reason After nearly two decades of building outdoor spaces across Medina, I’ve seen what happens when pergolas aren’t designed for Minnesota’s conditions. You can spot them a mile away—posts that lean, beams that twist, and concrete pads that have heaved out of level after just a couple of winters. It’s not because homeowners cut corners intentionally. It’s usually because whoever built it didn’t account for what our climate really does to structures that aren’t anchored right. Medina’s heavy clay soil doesn’t drain well. It holds moisture, freezes solid, and then expands like a hydraulic press pushing on everything above it. When pergolas are set on surface-level post bases, that pressure has nowhere to go but up—and the whole thing moves. Even small shifts can cause joints to separate, wood to crack, and hardware to loosen. That’s how a $15,000 structure starts looking tired after a few years instead of standing straight for decades. The truth is, pergolas here aren’t just about shade or looks. They’re about structure, drainage, and how every piece ties into the patio beneath it. A pergola that stands tall through Minnesota winters is built on the same principles as a good foundation—it’s only as strong as what’s underneath it. If you live in Medina and want to enjoy your backyard without worrying about your investment warping or sagging, start with design that respects the environment it’s built in. That means thinking beyond lumber and stain colors. It means understanding soil movement, water management, and the importance of integrating your pergola with the patio below it.
Solutions for Properties in Minnetonka You can always tell a Minnetonka yard that’s fighting its slope. Water doesn’t lie, it finds the weak spots every time. I’ve walked plenty of properties where a backyard starts beautiful in June, but by September, the patio is heaving, the grass near the pool looks like a marsh, and the homeowner is wondering how it got so bad so fast. The truth is, when you’re dealing with rolling terrain and heavy clay soils like we have around Minnetonka, you can’t just move dirt and hope gravity behaves. You need a plan that manages water from the surface all the way down through the subsoil. This is what I’ll walk you through here. You’ll see what actually causes drainage issues on sloped properties, how poor planning leads to cracked patios and shifting pool decks, and the smart drainage systems that can stop those problems for good. Whether you live near Lake Minnetonka or up in the higher ridges closer to Deephaven or Woodland, understanding how your yard sheds water is the difference between a property that lasts and one that’s constantly under repair. The Real Challenge of Sloped Minnetonka Yards Minnetonka is known for its hills, lakefront properties, and mature trees, but all that beauty comes with a set of challenges below the surface. Most of the soil here is dense clay. It holds water like a sponge and drains slowly, which means after every heavy rain, that water looks for a way downhill. If it doesn’t have a proper outlet, it ends up collecting right where you don’t want it, like along your patio, at the base of a retaining wall, or near your pool deck. I see this every season: homeowners trying to solve slope problems with a quick regrade, a layer of rock, or a simple surface drain. Those things might help for a while, but they don’t address what’s really happening underground. Clay soil doesn’t just get wet—it becomes saturated, expanding and contracting with every freeze-thaw cycle. When that happens under a patio or wall, it doesn’t matter how well-built the surface looks. The ground will move, and that movement cracks stone, shifts pavers, and slowly tears apart everything on top. The other challenge with sloped lots is how water interacts with gravity. It accelerates downhill, gaining momentum as it goes. When it hits a flat area like a patio, the water loses speed but not volume, pooling instead of flowing. That’s why I tell clients that “flat spots” on a sloped property are both an opportunity and a responsibility. They’re the best spaces to create usable outdoor areas, but they have to be engineered to handle water movement. I’ve worked on plenty of Minnetonka yards where the backyard has a beautiful view but terrible grading. You can have a perfect slope on paper, but if it directs water toward your house or creates a bowl effect between structures, you’ll end up with soggy soil and standing puddles that never dry. The goal is to move water off and away while keeping the surface level enough for comfort and usability. It’s a fine balance, but when it’s done right, it completely transforms how a property functions.