The plan
The dressing here is 50 mm of decorative gravel, which sits inside the 40–75 mm range the gravel calculator treats as usual over a membrane. That depth is a planning choice rather than a sourced rule: deeper hides the membrane better and costs more stone.
The edging is log roll, sold in 2.4 m lengths, so a 6 m run takes three rolls. It is a fixed product size rather than a design decision, which is why it is the one quantity here that comes from a product sheet instead of an engine.
Doing it, in order
- Mark the edge line with a taut string. Log roll bends, so the line can follow a curve — just keep the curve gentle, or the rolls kink at the joints.
- Cut the edge with a half-moon or an edging iron and take out a shallow trench for the roll to drop into, keeping the base of the trench firm.
- Set the roll in the trench with its top about 25 mm above the finished gravel level, so the stone is held by the edging rather than spilling over it.
- Pin or peg the roll at both ends and at every joint, working along the run so it cannot bow between fixings.
- Lay a woven weed-control membrane over the border soil, lapping the joints by about 100 mm and tucking the edge under the roll.
- Spread the gravel to a consistent 50 mm and rake it level, keeping it just below the top edge of the roll.
Don’t forget
- The edging has to sit on something firm A roll pinned into loose soil lifts at the joints within a season. Firm the base of the trench first, and pin at every joint rather than only at the two ends.
- Fixing pins or pegs Usually sold separately from the rolls, and the maker’s own guidance covers how many a run needs. There is no count on this page because no engine sizes one and no rate card states a figure — that absence is deliberate.
- Weeds already in the ground A membrane stops new seed germinating from below. Perennial weeds already rooted will push up through it, so clear those before the membrane goes down.
- What the edging ends against A border that runs into a lawn, a path or a wall needs the roll to finish against something solid, or the last 100 mm works loose.
Material take-off for this plan
Worked out by the site’s own Gravel for this plan’s dimensions, not typed in by hand.
The working
| Working | Value |
|---|---|
| Area to cover | 3.6 m² 6.00 m × 0.60 m |
| Depth | 50 mm 40–75 mm is the usual depth over a weed membrane |
| Volume | 0.20 m³ 0.18 m³ plus 10% allowance |
| Material | Decorative gravel Weighted at 1.50 tonnes per m³ for loose decorative gravel |
| Bulk bags (850 kg) | 1 bag Rounded up to whole bags |
| 25 kg bags | 12 bags Rounded up. Costlier per tonne than bulk — use bulk if you can |
What to order
| Material | Quantity | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Decorative gravel (loose, by weight) | 0.3 tonnes | Merchants round loosely — about 0.5 t is a practical order. |
| Bulk bags (850 kg) | 1 bag | Needs somewhere flat and dry to sit, and a way to move them. |
| 25 kg bags | 12 bags | ≈ 297 kg in total. Fine for small areas. |
| Weed control fabric / membrane | 4 m² | The area plus 10% for overlaps — stops gravel sinking into the soil. |
Gravel goes down over a woven membrane, not straight onto soil — it stops weeds coming through and stops the stones disappearing into the ground over a few winters. Spread the full depth in one pass, rake it level, and keep it 15–20 mm below damp-proof course level against a wall.
Edging figures — from a named rate card, not from an engine
No calculator on this site sizes border edging, so the roll count below is not engine output. It is arithmetic on the roll length the maker publishes.
| Item | Quantity | Where the figure comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Log roll edging, 2.4 m per roll | 3 rolls (6.00 m ÷ 2.40 m, rounded up) | The 2.4 m roll length is the maker’s own product dimension. Rolls are sold singly and in packs of two and four, and in heights from about 150 mm to 300 mm. |
| Log roll height | 200 mm assumed | The height is a choice against your dressing depth, not a sourced figure — so treat 200 mm as a planning assumption. It stands about 25 mm proud of a 50 mm dressing. |
Source: B&Q — log edging rolls, garden lawn border edge, (H)150 mm (L)2.4 m, set of 4 — Read 25 September 2026. The 2.4 m roll length and the multi-pack sizes the roll count is based on.
Source: UK Garden Products — log roll, 225 mm × 2.4 m — Read 25 September 2026. A second merchant listing the same 2.4 m roll length, with the height options.
The roll height and the 50 mm dressing depth are choices rather than sourced figures, so they are labelled planning assumptions. The roll length, which is what the count is actually worked out from, is the maker’s published dimension.
A border, edged and planned out FAQs
How many rolls of edging do I need for a 6 m border?
Three rolls of 2.4 m, from the maker’s own roll length: 6.00 m ÷ 2.40 m is 2.5, and rolls are bought whole. A pack of four covers the run with one spare.
How much gravel does a 6 m by 0.6 m border need?
0.30 tonnes at 50 mm deep, from the gravel calculator — which also returns 4 m² of woven membrane, the area plus 10% for lapping the joints.
How deep should gravel be over a membrane?
This plan uses 50 mm, inside the 40–75 mm range the gravel calculator treats as usual. It is a planning choice: deeper buries the membrane better and costs more.
Does edging stop weeds?
No. Edging holds the dressing in and gives you an edge to cut against; keeping weeds down is the membrane’s job, and perennial weeds already rooted need clearing before either goes down.