As the snow begins to pile up for many of us, and for the fortunate few where snow is not part of Mother Nature’s plan, flora goes dormant until the spring rains bring new life to our gardens, we need to take a moment to pause, think, and create a plan of action for the next round of flora festivities. When many of us say that “we like to garden,” what we mean is that we like to plant, wait, and then view the bountiful beauty that we have created. Sadly, it is not this simple, as there are hours and hours of prep work that need to be completed before we can head to our garden center, pick out our lot, and get our hands dirty.

versailles_garden-wallpaper1.jpgTrue visual beauty is heightened by contrast and definition. Clean lines, varying heights and colors of plant material and proper spacing all lend a hand in creating a landscape we can be proud of. In this entry I will discuss the aspect of creating clean lines, as this will require immediate attention when the snow thaws, and it is one of the most tedious and frustrating jobs for the weekend green thumb.

Last spring, after hours of palm and instep bruising manual labor, we clean%20lines.jpg created razor clean lines around our planting beds, wielding an instrument of torture known as the edging spade. Six inches at a time we drove the spade straight down, created a small runoff channel, and shaped the soil. About a month later we noticed that grass and weeds started to grow over our clean lines creating a shaggy look to the edging%20spade.gifmanicured masterpiece we toiled away on. We head to the shed and grab the edging spade and repeat the process. Although the edging spade is forged from solid steel, if you are like me, you have heard the familiar “twang” of the shovel bending, rendering a noodle-like implement – but we continue on.

What if I told you that a new product from International Mulch Company could end the yearly misery of cutting in edges, not only for this year, but for years to come? Pull out the edging shovel one last time, shape your beds and then install Rubberific Landscape Borders for long-lasting beauty 365 days a year. Made from 100% recycled rubber, these borders are easy to install, and offer the flexibility to create gentle curves or straight lines along flower beds, driveways, sidewalks or fence lines. Edges will not get that overgrown look as these landscape borders suppress weed growth while allowing air, water and nutrients through. Available in a variety of colors, the Rubberific Landscape Border comes in 10 foot lengths and is 4 ½ inches wide.

BorderFinal-compressed.jpg

Some may call this cheating in the garden purist vernacular, but we see this product as a way to spend more time enjoying the fruits of your labor. And it will feel good to retire your edging spade thanks to some recycled rubber tires…won’t it?