Using Mowing Strips With Driveways

A mowing strip is often employed alongside a driveway to separate flower beds from lawns or different areas of the garden, although they are perhaps more common in gardens.

Reasons For Laying A Mowing Strip

A mowing strip is like a very narrow path, although it's not intended for anyone to walk on. It is laid flush to the surface of the lawn or flower bed adjacent to the driveway, not raised in the same way that edging is. The idea is to provide a visual and physical barrier between the different sections but one that a lawnmower can pass over without being damaged. This enables the mower to cut right up to the edge of the lawn.

Although a mowing strip is by no means essential, they do make lawn maintenance easier than raised edging on its own or low walls around beds. With raised barriers like those, the mower can only go so close to the wall or Driveway Edging. This means getting the strimmer or shears out to finish off the strip of grass that the mower has left. With a mowing strip that finishing step is cut out.

Gravel Or Other Loose Stone Filling

A mowing strip is also useful next to Gravel or other Loose Material Driveways, even if there is raised edging next to it. This is because errant bits of gravel or stone can escape over the edging, particularly if someone drives quickly past. Having a mowing strip provides a place for the gravel to go and prevents much of it from reaching the lawn.

Gravel or stone in the lawn can then get picked up by the blades of a lawnmower. Not only can this damage the lawnmower but the stone or gravel can be shot out at force by it, damaging cars, windows and even pets or people.

Laying a Mowing Strip

Putting a mowing strip down is much easier than laying a proper path or driveway, which has to cope with the strain of people or cars walking on it. But it is best to resist the temptation to simply lift turf and lay the blocks or bricks straight down on the earth. Without any supporting foundation at all, the slabs are likely to move and lift, creating an uneven surface which could damage mower blades anyway.

A bed of sand is sufficient. Once you've marked the route of the mowing strip, remove the turf and dig a trench along the course of the strip. Make it deep enough for the paving blocks you are using and another 1.5-2in (about 4-5cm) of sand. Building sand is too fine, so use a coarse grit sand and lay it evenly at the bottom of the trench. Then lay the bricks or blocks you have chosen, tamping them down with a mallet until they are all level.

A Simple Job

And that's it. If your ground is very soft or unstable, you can put a cement layer down as well as sand but it isn't normally necessary.