Anyone with a gravel driveway is familiar with the problem of stones scattering everywhere each time a vehicle or person crosses it, so creating a firm border with proper edging to keep gravel in place and maintain a neater appearance is often desired.
Gravel driveway edging can be completed using various materials. From brick to steel border edging, we cover some of the best ways to keep your gravel in place.
Steel edging for gravel driveways
Among the very best edging for gravel drives is thick steel edging.
Steel driveway edging is a very robust option and can withstand heavy traffic at the driveway edge.
Manufactured from mild steel in 16mm sections, it is durable and will last for years to come with little to no maintenance required.
Another benefit of steel edging is that if your driveway borders grass, it is strong enough to withstand the pressure of your lawn mower, helping keep your garden and driveway looking their best all year round.
Steel edging installation is straightforward, whether you prefer to have the edging installed by a professional or to have a DIY kit delivered directly to your door. You can choose the option that suits you best.
A simple installation process and powerful ability to keep gravel drives neat make this steel driveway edging virtually unbeatable.
Brick driveway edging
A second solution for edging your gravel driveway is to use bricks.
Brick edging is a driveway border solution that offers great versatility as the individual bricks can be arranged in numerous ways and come in various colours and finishes.
Using bricks to border your driveway can make sense if you’re doing a complete garden makeover.
However, just using them to edge an existing path usually isn’t the best value.
You’ll need highly skilled professionals for the job, and those new bricks will likely look a bit odd next to the older surface.
It can also be helpful to consider that unless the bricks are raised to create a lip, they’re unlikely to stop your gravel from spilling onto your lawn and can therefore be a costly and ineffective option.
Concrete driveway edging
Raised concrete sections on either side of your driveway will do a perfectly good job of keeping your gravel in place and offer a relatively inexpensive solution, as it can be poured in one go rather than laid by hand.
However, there are some disadvantages to using it as a driveway border.
Concrete expands and contracts with temperature changes, which can affect the look and durability of your driveway edging.
To prevent it from cracking, you will need to break it into sections with gaps so it can expand over time.
Plus, some people might not like how the material looks. It’s a little bulky, which isn’t to everyone’s taste, especially when other affordable, minimalist options exist.
Plastic edging
One of the simplest driveway edging ideas for keeping gravel where it should be is using plastic edging strips.
These can be easily pushed into the ground on either side of the drive to form a lip that prevents the stones from escaping.
Plastic edging takes only a few minutes to install and is flexible, allowing you to pull it out of the ground to reshape your driveway as needed.
But there are also some downsides to consider with plastic edging.
Firstly, some people dislike the presence of plastic in their gardens because it can look cheap.
Worse still, plastic isn’t durable enough to withstand the weight of a car rolling over it. In fact, even treading on one can break it, costing you money to repair or replace it.
Though it may seem like value for money, it could end up costing you more in the long run.
To conclude
Ultimately, picking the perfect material for your gravel driveway edging really comes down to what you need and how you want the area to look.
Some choices are more understated, but they still need to be tough enough to handle cars and people walking over them.
To figure out the best fit for your situation, you need to weigh up the pros and cons of each option carefully, making sure you select the one that ticks all your boxes.
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