How to Edge a Planter & Walkway

Measure out from the edges of your walkway and planter to a distance that is the height of your pavers plus 2 inches. (The height of the paver is the shortest dimension.) Pound wooden stakes into the ground to mark your measurement along the walkway and around the perimeter of the planter. Use a wooden mallet to pound in the stakes, and then connect the stakes by winding one end of a string around the first stake and continuing until you reach the end of the walkway and planter. Repeat for the other side. Carefully spray the lines you have marked using landscaper's spray paint.

Measure the entire length of your edging with a measuring tape. Convert the measurement to inches. Divide that number by the length, in inches, of the pavers you plan to use. The answer is the number of pavers you will need to complete your project.

Dig a trench 6 inches deep from the edge of the walkway and planter to the line you have marked with landscaper's paint on both sides of the walkway and planter. Use a square-bladed garden spade. The side of the trench closest to the walkway and planter should be completely vertical. Cover the bottom and sides of the trench with landscaper's fabric. The fabric will help prevent weeds from growing up between the pavers.

Fill the trench with 2 inches of 3/4-inch crushed limestone. Tamp the limestone down with the 2-by-4. Fill the trench with 3 inches of sand. Tamp down the sand with the 2-by-4 and add more if necessary. Move the string attached to the wooden stakes until it is 1 inch above the ground at each stake. The string will guide how deeply you will bury the pavers in the sand.

Set the pavers into the sand end to end on their edges, pushing them hard up against the vertical side of the trench and sitting them firmly in the sand. You will probably need to wiggle them around to make them stable. Adjust the sand base as necessary to make all of the pavers extend 1 inch above the ground. Use the mallet to make sure the pavers are firmly set into the sand, and then fill in between the pavers and on the sides of the trench with sand. Use a hose to dampen the sand so it will settle. Add more sand as necessary to make a neat installation.