How to divide gravel driveway and grass?

Question

G'day,

We've got a gravel driveway that runs along the side of the house. However there's no "boundary" of the grass so they become one in the same, and rocks often get kicked/rolled into grass, and ever fighting grass in the gravel.

I would like to dig a trench, put a narrow timber, or even plastic lining to act as a block. What's the best go with timber in this location? And any experience in best exposed height? Sometimes we will drive into yard to menouver trailers/utes etc.

see image for the area I'd like to block.

Cheers.

EricL · Answer

Hello @Doyle

Just to add to the excellent suggestions made, I propose adding a low-level pathway that you can walk over and drive over at the same time. I've placed a sample image below rendered using AI to give you an idea of what it could look like. It does not have to be very pronounced, the idea is to present a definite border between the lawn and gravel driveway.

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric

MikeTNZ · Answer

Hi @Doyle, Welcome along to the Bunnings Workshop community, it's great to have you here!

I can see what you mean, that must be a real nightmare when you go to mow your lawn, without broken windows, etc, no-one wants that.

I think @MitchellMc has you sorted, just be aware that any timber that is in constant contact with the ground needs to be treated to Grade H4,

otherwise it is going to degrade (rot) pretty quickly, it's best to do something like this once and never have to worry about it again.

If you are going to be driving things into the ground, care needs to be taken that you don't end up striking a power cable, a sewer line or anything else that might be hiding under the ground, you would not believe how many garage sub-main cables I've had to join in a trench when the person doing a job like this didn't do their homework.

I would love to see how this turns out, all you really need is a decent "threshold" between the drive and the lawn.

Thanks for asking the original question and if you require further help, by all means, let us know.

Cheers,

Mike T.

MitchellMc · Answer

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @Doyle. It’s great to have you with us.

I'd be inclined to use treated Pine sleepers for this. You could dig a shallow 190mm deep trench along the edge of the driveway, set the timber in place and secure them with steel sleeper pegs driven into the ground at regular intervals.

Given that you'll occasionally need to drive trailers and vehicles across the edge, I'd keep the timber almost flush with the surrounding ground rather than creating a raised border. Around 10mm above the gravel and lawn should be enough to establish a defined edge and help contain the gravel without creating a significant obstacle for tyres.

You could also consider a flexible plastic garden edging if you'd prefer something less substantial. However, it is likely to be less robust than a solid timber edging. Whichever option you choose, establishing that physical separation should also make maintaining a clean lawn edge considerably easier.

Here's a helpful guide: How to choose garden edging.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell