# Clean edges washing out



## rvczoysia (Jul 18, 2021)

I've converted the flower bed in front of my house from stone border to clean edges. I like the look of them when reel mowed. However during heavy rains it seems to hold water and washes the mulch out. The entire bed is graded down so to speak and is flat and holds water for several hours after a rain. I was just wondering if anyone else has experienced this with clean edges? I've thought about going from mulch to rock but not sure if it would still have the same appearance and actually edging it may be hard with rock.


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## Austinite (Oct 4, 2018)

I struggled with mine for that very reason. I tried mulch, just soil, gravel, etc... as much as I liked the look, I did not want to dig up my yard to drain the bed. I ended up concreting the bed in. Its on a slope, goes from 1 ft to 2.5 ft.

Now they make some "Sticky" stuff that is made to be applied to gravel and mulch to help keep it in place. I have never used it. Might be worth exploring. Mulch Anchor and Bark Binder are a couple brands you can look up.


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## rvczoysia (Jul 18, 2021)

Austinite said:


> I struggled with mine for that very reason. I tried mulch, just soil, gravel, etc... as much as I liked the look, I did not want to dig up my yard to drain the bed. I ended up concreting the bed in. Its on a slope, goes from 1 ft to 2.5 ft.
> 
> Now they make some "Sticky" stuff that is made to be applied to gravel and mulch to help keep it in place. I have never used it. Might be worth exploring. Mulch Anchor and Bark Binder are a couple brands you can look up.


Thank you for the feedback. Yeah I've racked my brain trying to figure out a easy solution. Will look into the products you mentioned. Agree with you that draining it is a no-go.


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## dawk (Nov 29, 2021)

I'm struggling to picture what you did and what the problem was. Picture?


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## bernstem (Jan 16, 2018)

It sounds like a soil drainage issue. What did you do to prep the garden beds?


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