How to Make Concrete Garden Edging

Concrete garden edging allows landscapers to create a decorative barrier around the garden that separates it from surrounding landscaping. Concrete edging not only accents and highlights any landscaping, but also can prevent encroachment of weeds and/or other plants into the garden from outside of the border. Making long-lasting concrete garden edging isn’t difficult. You only need to create individual concrete forms in precast concrete garden edging molds and then install the forms side-by-side around your garden.

Plastic drop cloth

Concrete garden edging molds

Vegetable oil

Paper towels

Fast-setting concrete

Water

Bucket

Shovel

Concrete trowel

Mask

Goggles

Rotary tool

Concrete engraver attachment

Sand

Stone pigments (optional)

Lay your plastic drop cloth on a flat and level surface and then prep your concrete garden edging molds. Pour light-colored vegetable oil onto a paper towel and then smear it across the inside of each mold in a thin layer. The oil helps stop the finished, dry concrete forms from sticking to the molds. After you have coated the inside of each mold, lay the molds--inside facing up--on the plastic drop cloth.

Mix your fast-setting concrete. Follow the package instructions for the specific concrete product that you chose. Typically, this involves dumping dry concrete mix into a large bucket and then adding water, mixing with a large trowel or hoe as you add the water until the mixture is in a wet, pourable form.

Pour your fast-setting concrete into the mold.

Grasp the sides of your first mold and then lift and bounce it on the flat surface two or three times to level out the concrete and force any air bubbles inside that can weaken the concrete to the surface. Repeat with the other molds. Wait for the concrete to dry (follow package instructions for drying times) and then remove each mold from around the concrete forms.

Prepare the forms for use around your garden’s edge. Put on a mask and goggles. Remove any rough concrete edges with a rotary tool and concrete engraving attachment.

Install your concrete garden edging forms. Dig a trench approximately 4 to 6 inches deep and the width of your forms. Pour a thin layer of sand inside the trench. Put the forms into the trench, laying the forms as dictated by the specific design and style of the forms and the shape of the trench. Add or remove sand as needed to level out the forms. Fill in the holes around the forms and/or between any seams with dirt.

If you want colored concrete garden edging, add stone pigments in Step 2. Follow package instructions for the specific pigment brand that you chose, as the exact method of adding the pigment (for example, the amount and the time to add) depends on the brand type, pigment color and whether you purchased wet or dry pigments.