What It Does

• A lawn edger addresses the hard-to-reach areas around the edges of your lawn where the grass meets other fixtures, such as driveways, walkways or sidewalks. These areas that abut other fixtures are often too difficult to reach with regular mowers and trimmers. If you overlook them, wildly growing grass and weeds will overrun the edges. The edger will trim away errant vegetation and give you a professional-looking and distinct border along garden beds or other areas where you want to clearly mark a separation of territory.
  
  

How It Works

• Lawn edgers come in both gas-powered and electrical-powered models; the electric models can run either with extension cords or on battery power. Each kind of edger features a vertically aligned cutting wheel or edged blade. The blade is much the same as the one found on a traditional lawnmower, except that its vertical orientation -- rather than horizontal like a mower's -- allows for cutting precisely along edges without damaging the blade or the material nearby (such as concrete or pavers).
  
  

Usage Tips

• If there is a solid surface near the edge, such as a sidewalk or driveway, set the wheels on that surface and work in the direction you are facing with the wheels properly placed. Even if you have to do some deep digging, start the edger on the shallowest setting possible. Make several passes at this shallow setting, then move to deeper settings with the blade. This will allow the blade to gradually separate soil and roots, instead of trying to tear through a thick layer all at once, which could potentially damage the blade.
  
  

Warnings

• The blade on the lawn edger is extremely sharp and can very dangerous. You should never attempt to touch the blade; if you have to perform any maintenance to the blade or the underside of the edger, completely disconnect the power source. This means unplugging the machine, detaching battery connections or removing spark plugs so that the machine cannot accidentally activate. Always wear protective goggles, ear protection, long-sleeved and long-legged clothing and close-toed shoes to protect yourself from any debris that can fly out from under the edger while you work.