Edge control over the advancing grass and weeds | why and how | Charles Dowding

Edge control over the advancing grass and weeds | why and how | Charles Dowding
Edges move in, more than you think. Keeping them tidy is feasible when you maintain them often, as I show here.

One exception is for new beds on strong weeds such as old pasture. The existing root system of edge plants is already strong and will keep invading for the best part of a year.
Notice how I always have a path between any weedy edge and my first bed. This makes edging so much more manageable.

Two options for tools are:
1 Long-handled shears, with blunt blades from cutting soil!
2 A half-moon edger, with some hand clearing after that.

Plus I show using a trowel to remove any deeper roots such as dandelion, or invading plants such as couch grass.

Even if you have sided beds, the edge weeds and grass can sometimes grow underneath, or seed from above, so you still need to control this edge.
When you have no wooden sides, as here, I recommend you always create and maintain a path strip between the plot edge and your first bed. In year one, cardboard is useful for this. Similar to what I show at 11:59 here.

See these two videos for more on maintaining an edge when you are not using wooden sides:
1    • Wooden edges (1) – why and how to rem...  
2    • Wooden Edges Removed(2),  five months...  

00:00 Introduction, while demonstrating using long-handled shears - blades a little blunt!
01:05 Reason for keeping edges tidy
01:43 What to do with the cuttings
02:06 Using a half-moon edger - I demonstrate how
03:20 I follow up with a trowel
04:48 Mowing to maintain edges
05:57 Frequency of edging
06:18 Using a trowel to remove perennial weeds such as dock or dandelion root
07:42 Maintaining the edge area between bed and grass/weeds, using a copper trowel to remove perennial weeds, incl. dandelion
09:51 Carrots growing under mesh against root fly, and weeds in the bed
10:28 Harvesting some carrots - no root fly!
11:08 Another option - cardboard then woodchip
11:32 Chard growing on the edge - from plants grown for homesaved seed
11:59 I demonstrate laying cardboard on the edge, then covering with woodchip
13:53 Benefits of having a weed-free edge
14:21 Outro

Filmed at Homeacres no dig garden by Edward Dowding, mid autumn 2023.

Find more resources about no dig on my website where the bookstore has a selection of signed copies https://www.charlesdowding.co.uk/stor...

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