Our Garden Edging Tips: Patio Edging Ideas

A beautiful patio is the heart of your outdoor living area, but it's the finishing touches that truly enhance the space. One of the most critical, yet often overlooked, elements is the patio edging. Garden edging is more than just a border; it defines the shape of your patio, prevents materials like sand or gravel from migrating, and creates a seamless, polished look. It’s the framework that makes your patio design complete. If you’re searching for the perfect patio edging ideas, you’ve come to the right place. We'll explore a variety of styles and materials, all available to buy online today.

What is the Best Material for Edging a Patio?

The "best" edging material depends on your patio's style, material, and budget. At Gardenstone, we specialise in high-quality, durable solutions, primarily focusing on Natural Stone and stonecast Garden Edging products.

Concrete & Decorative Edging: For patios with a more traditional or rustic feel, our concrete decorative garden edging provides a charming finish. These can mimic the look of natural materials like weathered timber or stone but with the durability of concrete. They are often a practical and cost-effective choice for defining garden beds and paths adjacent to your patio.

Natural Stone Paving: For a timeless, elegant look, edging a patio with natural stone is unbeatable. Using a contrasting or complementary stone, such sandstone garden edging set against a smooth sandstone patio, adds incredible texture and interest. Natural stone edging offers supreme durability and a unique, classic appeal that only improves with age. Browse our full range of Natural Stone Paving for inspiration.

Porcelain Paving: If you love a crisp, modern finish, consider modern garden edging. Offering clean lines in cool colourways. Products include our Benson Decorative Garden Edging in Black and our Dorchester decorative garden edging.

How Do You Finish the Edges of a Patio?

Finishing the edges is the most critical step for a patio's longevity, aesthetic appeal, and structural integrity. For any paved patio—whether using natural stone, porcelain, or concrete edging—the units must be set using a Mortared Edging technique. This process locks the perimeter units in place, providing the essential restraint that prevents the entire paving system from shifting outward.

Step-by-Step: How to Finish Patio Edging

Achieving a durable edge requires proper restraint—meaning the edging unit must be physically locked in place with mortar and concrete.

Lay the Edging Units

• Place a windrow of the semi-dry mortar into the trench.
• Place the edging unit (stone, brick, or concrete) onto the mortar bed. Use a rubber mallet to gently tap the unit down until its top edge aligns perfectly with your string line.
• Leave an appropriate small joint gap (usually 5mm to 10mm) between units, depending on the material.

Apply the Concrete Haunching (The Key to Restraint)

• This step is crucial. Haunching is the supportive concrete mass packed against the side of the edging unit to prevent it from shifting outwards.
• Pack a stronger concrete mix or a wetter, plastic mortar firmly against the outer face of the installed edging.
• The haunching should extend at least 75mm to 100mm wide at the base and cover at least half the vertical depth of the edging unit, being finished off cleanly just below the top surface.

Curing and Final Polish

• Allow the bedding mortar and the haunching to cure fully (typically 24 to 48 hours) before walking on the area or laying the main patio paving against the inner edge.
• Once cured, the joints between the edging units can be filled with a matching jointing compound or mortar for a professional finish.

Addressing Practical Design Challenges

When designing your space, specific installation challenges often arise. For patios that sit slightly above the surrounding ground level, raised patio edging ideas come into play, usually involving vertical walling stone topped with coping stones to form a neat retaining wall. To achieve that sought-after seamless transition between patio and lawn, a mower strip is the professional solution; this involves setting a single course of brick or durable edging flush with the grass level, creating a stable running surface for your mower blades.

Integrating Materials: Gravel Patio Edging Ideas

Gravel patio edging focuses on containment. A gravel patio requires a robust, continuous edging to stop the stones from spreading onto the lawn or flowerbeds. Setting a line of heavy-duty stone setts or purpose-made concrete kerbs firmly in concrete is the most traditional and highly effective method for containing gravel. These materials offer the height and mass needed to resist lateral pressure from the loose aggregate.

Ideas for How to Edge a Small Patio

When dealing with a smaller outdoor area, the goal may be to maximise the sense of space, and your patio edging plays a crucial, often counterintuitive, role. It's often best to avoid any overly bulky or highly contrasting edging materials, as these can visually frame and shrink the patio, making it feel confined. Instead, focus on techniques that create a seamless visual flow.

The most effective approach to maximise space is the use the main paving slab right up to the very edge, setting it firmly in concrete with correct haunching for stability. This clean, continuous look eliminates any unnecessary visual breaks, allowing the eye to sweep across the entire paved area.

How to Edge a Patio on a Budget?

A high-quality look doesn't have to break the bank! Here are a few patio border design ideas for the budget-conscious:

• Decorative Garden Edging starts from just £4.00 offering a cost effective option for smalle areas.
• Repurposed Bricks/Pavers: If you have old bricks or spare pavers, laying them in a neat line can create a simple rustic border.
• DIY Concrete Edge: Pour a low-profile strip of concrete (perhaps using a simple flexible plastic former) along the edge and finish it with a light texture or a decorative colour wash.

Patio Edging Ideas : Featured Gardenstone Products

Choosing the right product is key to achieving both the desired style and the essential structural integrity for your patio. Our dedicated edging collection features high-quality concrete and natural stone options engineered for lasting performance. Here are a few popular selections from our website that deliver excellent restraint and stunning visual appeal:

1. The Robust, Structural Edge: Grosvenor Kerbstones

When your primary requirement is maximum stability and containment—especially for driveways or patio edges abutting a lawn—a strong kerbstone is the solution.

• Style: Clean, straight, and functional. Kerbstones are typically taller and thicker than decorative edging, providing superior strength when set in concrete haunching.
• Material Focus: Often made from high-density concrete or stonecast, they are designed to be the ultimate rigid barrier against lateral pressure and shifting paving.
• Use It For: Defining long, straight perimeter lines or creating the essential, robust barrier needed to contain Gravel Patio Edging Ideas.

Shop Grosvenor Kerbstones

2. The Classic, Defining Border: Victorian Rope Edging

For period properties or traditional garden designs, a decorative concrete edge can add charming detail while providing necessary restraint.

• Style: The intricate rope-top design offers an authentic, classic finish that complements traditional brickwork and paving patterns.
• Material Focus: These pieces are generally stonecast, providing the durability of a modern material with the look of historic clay or terracotta.
• Use It For: Separating planting beds from a patio or pathway, adding a low decorative wall, or creating a subtle, rounded perimeter for a cottage garden feel.

Shop Victorian Rope Edging

3. The Rustic, Textured Edge: Riven Sandstone Garden Edging

If your patio is paved with natural stone, using a complementary stone edging creates the most harmonious and professional border.

• Style: Rustic and authentic, featuring the naturally riven texture of sandstone.
• Material Focus: Made from Natural Stone, these edging units are perfect for blending seamlessly with our sandstone paving ranges, ensuring colour and material consistency across your hard landscaping.
• Use It For: Patios with a traditional or timeless aesthetic where you need a rigid border that avoids the manufactured look of concrete.

Shop Riven Sandstone Garden Edging

4. The Seamless Integration: Sawtooth Brick Edging

This style is excellent for giving a patio a smart, industrial, or cottage look without relying on actual brick.

• Style: Mimics the classic look of traditional brick edging, laid vertically, known as a "sawtooth" or "dog-tooth" pattern.
• Material Focus: Constructed from durable concrete, these units provide the visual interest of brick with the faster installation and stability of larger, pre-cast units.
• Use It For: Adding texture around the perimeter or creating a sharp, low edge that is easy to step over.

Shop Sawtooth Brick Edging

Finalising Your Vision

Choosing the right Patio border design ideas is the key to a patio that not only looks stunning but also lasts for decades. Whether you opt for the crisp elegance of porcelain, the unique charm of natural stone, or the budget-friendly practicality of concrete edging, Gardenstone has the perfect solution for your project.

Define your space, protect your investment, and enjoy the beautiful, complete look that professional edging provides. Explore our dedicated section for Garden and Lawn Edging and begin planning your perfect patio finish today.