Are the lines of your garden or property looking blurry or nondescript? A little lawn maintenance can give you the sharp, crisp edges that are the hallmark of a well-manicured lawn. But in order to get those clean lines, you’ll need the best lawn edger you can find.
This article will teach you everything you need to know about how to select the right edger and what some of the most popular choices are.
Consider the Size of Your Yard
When deciding which unit will be the best lawn edger for your yard, you need to factor in how big your yard is. If you have a lot of area to edge, such as driveways, sidewalks, or extensive landscaping areas, you might want to buy a bigger, stronger unit.
Manual, Gas or Electric Edgers
Edgers come in a variety of prices and can be manual, electric, or gas-operated. Each type of edger has its own pros and cons. Here is a basic rundown of their benefits and drawbacks.
- Manual. If you just have some light edging to do and you don’t mind spending the extra time tinkering around in your yard, you may be able to get by with a manual edger. They take more time to cover an area than the other types do.
- Electric. Electric edgers can come with cords or they can be cordless with batteries. The nice thing about cordless electric edgers is that you can go anywhere on your property without having to worry about running an extension cord to where you are working. The main drawback is that batteries can drain quickly while you are doing yard work, and you might be in the middle of a project when your battery conks out on you.
- Gas. If you have a giant yard, you’ll likely want a gas edger because otherwise, you’ll have to go to the trouble of running extension cords to your edger for the areas that aren’t near a power outlet. Gas edgers generally offer more power than any other type, but they are louder and heavier than electric and manual edgers.
Sampling of Lawn Edgers
Black and Decker LSTE525
This is probably the best edger on our list. The Black and Decker LSTE525 12-inch unit can move back and forth between a trimmer and a wheeled edger. This is the update to the LST522 that we loved last year. You can use it to trim unsightly weeds or edges along your sidewalks, driveway, or landscaped areas. It has a power drive transmission, which gives extra torque, and it runs on a lithium battery. Even if you run out of battery power, this battery will charge quickly.
It offers a two-speed control – one gives you additional power, and the other lets you run the unit for an extended amount of time. Switching between the two modes is simple.
The LST522 has an automatic feed spool with ‘EasyFeed’ that gives you a button on the handle to advance the line. It is height adjustable. At 6.3 pounds, this unit is light enough that you’ll be able to do a considerable amount of edging without feeling too much burn in your sore muscles the next day.
WORX WG896 Lawn Edger
The WORX WG896 Electric Lawn Edger is the perfect machine for great edging. It is corded for great power and comes with steal low maintenance blades.
Of course the edging depth is adjustable to give you a custom professional finish. This is not a toy machine and also doubles as a trencher and has no difficulty running with the blades in the dirt.
We found this machine great at preparing the ground for installing landscaping borders. Since this machine is designed for digging in the dirt, it will greatly outperform line trimmers that double as edgers. For example, if you were to run an invisible dog fence, this would be the go-to trenching device.
Ames Steel Manual Edger
If you are looking for a lower cost manual edger, this Ames Steel Handled Landscape Border Edger will last you a lifetime. No batteries to charge. No wires to deal with.
The edger is essentially a half circle with stepping ledges on either side. Can be used for cutting out grass segments or for setting landscape borders. Once you feel the weight of this edger, you know you have a quality tool.
It comes with a T-handle and cutting teeth to make cutting through dirt and soil very easy. Of course, it is also fully assembled.
