PSA: Making This One Flower Bed Upgrade Will Save You SO Much Time Weeding
Garden season is officially in full swing, and whether you're elbow-deep in home-improvement mode or still trying to get motivated, you're doing great, sweetie. Just know that if you can get out there and prep for the warm months ahead, you'll actually be saving your future self time and money.
No matter which stage you're in for your yard work, though, it doesn't have to be overwhelming. Home rehabber Mina Starsiak (you might know her from HGTV's Good Bones), for one, has partnered with Lowe's to get all of her outdoor needs in check for the season. For her, working on a few key projects at a time—like building planters and planting flowers—is a great way to start.
Sure, you could add a plant here and there, but if you really want to boost your curb appeal, take things a step further and build your own flower beds. The task may sound daunting, but it doesn't need to be. The key, it turns out, is making sure you set up a good stone border wherever you plan on planting.
"Stone borders do more than just create a pretty barrier," Mina said. "A lot of times, if you don't have a clean break between your grass and your mulch, the grass will jump whatever small break is there and start growing under your bed." It's not just an aesthetic thing—it'll also cut down on the time you spend weeding.
Before you get started, just make sure you buy a landscaping cloth—it helps prevents weeds from growing, but moisture can still get through. "Use a good landscaping cloth in your bed, and then start setting your stones so they overlap the cloth, so your grass won't be able to jump through," Mina explained.
Here's exactly how you can install a stone border for your flower bed, based on Mina's advice:
Measure and mark the area you're installing the border on.
Dig a 2- to 3-inch-deep trench along the marked area (depending on the stone you choose).
Place the edging stones in the trench. (If possible, overlap them with the landscaping cloth, as per Mina's suggestion above.)
Fill in the open spaces with the dirt you dug up to hold the stones in place.
Note: Not all stone borders require a shovel. In this case, simply mark the areas you'll want to install the border on, then place the stones so they overlap the landscaping cloth. The purpose of this, Mina says, is to make it much harder for grass to grow through, since it will have to work against both the cloth and the rock.
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