Landscape Architect Articles

The Edging Edge08-01-04 | News

The Edging Edge

An asphalt installation without edging restraint loses a pleasing design element, but also tends to require more maintenance. Photos courtesy of Permaloc Corp.

As straight lines do not occur naturally in the landscape, it a challenge for the landscape contractor to install and maintain angular and rectilinear landscape designs. Often these designs are used in maintenance strips and walking paths, but also accentuate contemporary structures and formal gardens.

For the landscape contractor, this challenge extends beyond the installation and can become a long-term maintenance issue. For the designer and the property owner, the challenge is to select products that achieve the designer?EUR??,,????'???s intent at installation and sustain it over time against damage from power maintenance equipment and the eroding forces of nature.

AsphaltEdge enables a nice clean line between asphalt and grass or between asphalt and a mulch bed or other surfaces.

Often interlocking pavers are used in these situations because they lend themselves to hard structural edges that can be easily maintained. However, new materials that do not naturally create straight lines is the landscape contractor?EUR??,,????'???s challenge. These materials include stone, decomposed aggregate, mulch and asphalt, among others. These materials are often used for natural walking paths, bikeways, drives and maintenance strips, as well as landscape forms.

Harder & Warner Nursery of Caledonia, Michigan was faced with just such a challenge on a recent project in Grand Rapids, Michigan. With tight deadlines brought on by inclement weather, Harder & Warner was struggling to replicate pin straight lines in the landscape to accent a contemporary-style office building. Using a traditional metal landscape edging that was designed to be flexible, maintaining these lines proved to be a painstaking effort that was adding pressure to a quickly approaching deadline.

A view of the edging that separates a gravel bed and the aluminum staking. One hundred feet of 1/8" x 4" aluminum edging (including stakes) weighs only 41 pounds. The equivalent in steel would weigh 225 pounds; in wood (69 pounds); and in commercial vinyl (35 pounds).

To find a better solution, the contactor contacted Permaloc Corp. of Holland, Michigan, which manufactures edging and restraints. The company recommended a product called PermaStrip, an aluminum landscape edging for straight runs in the landscape. The L-shaped design is incredibly rigid, which saves time during installation and insures long-term performance. Harder & Warner went with this edging and completed the project ahead of schedule. The contractors saved money on labor, improved the quality and look of the project, and the facility owner received a product that will maintain the design intent for years to come.

The edging here is two-fold: Permastrip on the mulch bed and AsphaltEdge on the parking lot, including a nifty corner-edged angle.

On the same project, the general contractor utilized AsphaltEdge to create the desired pin straight lines along the edge of the asphalt parking lot and drive. This product, also L-shaped to insure rigidity, is anchored into the subbase; the vertical edge creates a perfectly vertical wall that can be maintained, insuring the straight lines will withstand the effects of nature, unlike a typical tapered asphalt installation.

The more common challenge of straight lines occurs in maintenance areas along buildings, fence lines and parking areas. These landscape features can consume valuable installation time and quickly detract from the overall look of the project if incorrect materials are used.

The aluminum edging is spiked into the existing asphalt base and can create straight or curved lines. Aluminum is a good choice, given that it?EUR??,,????'???s nontoxic, has excellent corrosion resistance, and is 100% recyclable.

Unique products can save time, money, and add to the overall quality of any project. When unique installation situations are encountered, there is often a supplier that manufactures a product specifically designed for the application. Don?EUR??,,????'???t waste time and money trying to make a product work that wasn?EUR??,,????'???t designed for the job. Use the internet, trade magazines (LCN?EUR??,,????'???s Buyer?EUR??,,????'???s Guide, for instance), your local distributor, or a recommendation from another contractor. Somewhere out there is a company making exactly the right product or tool for the job.