To keep your landscaping looking good, you should edge your lawn every time you mow during the growing season. That’s the rule most professional lawn care crews follow. But the right frequency depends on your grass type, the time of year, and how sharp you want your edges to look.
Some fast-growing grasses — like Bermuda and Zoysia — may need edging every week or two during peak summer. Slow-growing grasses or dormant grasses in fall and winter might only need edging once a month or less.
Lawn Love can connect you with local lawn care professionals for a free quote if you’d rather skip the guesswork.
| Key takeaways |
|---|
| • Edge every time you mow during the active growing season for the cleanest results. • Bermudagrass and Zoysiagrass need the most frequent edging because they spread above and below ground. • Reduce edging frequency in the fall and stop entirely when the grass goes dormant. • A blade edger won’t damage your lawn, no matter how often you use it. |
Edging frequency by grass type
Not all grasses creep at the same rate. The biggest factor is whether your grass spreads by runners above ground (stolons) or below ground (rhizomes), or both.
Warm-season grasses
| Grass type | Spread method | Edging frequency |
| Bermudagrass | Stolons + rhizomes | Weekly in summer |
| Zoysiagrass | Stolons + rhizomes | Weekly in summer |
| St. Augustinegrass | Stolons only | Every 1 to 2 weeks |
| Centipedegrass | Stolons only | Every 2 to 3 weeks |
| Bahiagrass | Stolons + rhizomes | Every 1 to 2 weeks |
| Buffalograss | Stolons only (slow-spreading) | Every 2 to 3 weeks |
Cool-season grasses
| Grass type | Spread method | Edging frequency |
| Kentucky bluegrass | Rhizomes (slow-spreading) | Every 2 to 3 weeks |
| Fine fescue | Bunch-type (some rhizomes) | Every 2 to 4 weeks |
| Tall fescue | Bunch-type | Every 2 to 4 weeks |
| Perennial ryegrass | Bunch-type | Every 2 to 4 weeks |
These are general guidelines. Your edging frequency will vary depending on your climate, soil conditions, and how fast your lawn grows in a given season.
“Bermudagrass and Zoysiagrass are quite aggressive as they produce both above- and below-ground runners,” says J. Bryan Unruh, Ph.D., professor and associate center director at the University of Florida’s West Florida Research and Education Center. “Edging only goes so deep, and the rhizomes of Bermudagrass and Zoysiagrass can, and often do, reside below the depth of the edger blade.”
St. Augustinegrass and centipedegrass only produce above-ground stolons, making them easier to contain. Cool-season grasses like tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass spread slowly or grow in clumps, so they need less frequent edging.
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Edging frequency by season
Whether you’re wondering how often to weed eat your yard or how often to edge grass, your schedule should follow your mowing schedule.
| Season | Warm-season grasses | Cool-season grasses |
| Spring | Weekly | Every 1 to 2 weeks |
| Summer | Weekly | Every 2 to 3 weeks |
| Fall | Every 2 to 3 weeks | Weekly |
| Winter | Stop when dormant | Stop when dormant |
“As long as the grass is actively growing, one should edge the turf,” Unruh said. “It is common to edge each time the lawn is mowed. As the seasons change and the turfgrass growth slows, the frequency of edging can mirror the overall mowing frequency.”
There’s no difference between warm-season and cool-season grasses when it comes to the edging approach itself. Growth rate drives the schedule regardless of grass type.
Read more: Lawn Mowing Tips and Tricks
Does edging frequency affect lawn health?
Not if you’re using the right tool. A dedicated blade edger cuts a clean groove along your lawn’s border without removing grass tissue from the turf surface.
“If we are using a blade edger, lawn health is not compromised,” Unruh said.
But string trimmers are a different story. “Some will use a string trimmer and scalp the edges down very low. This is injurious to the lawn,” he said.
The spinning line on a string trimmer removes too much grass tissue and damages the root system leaving thin, stressed turf that’s vulnerable to weeds. If you edge weekly with a blade edger, no harm done. If you edge weekly with a string trimmer held too low, you’ll see the damage add up over a season.
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Protect your trees while edging
String trimmers don’t just risk your turf. They’re one of the most common causes of tree damage in home lawns. “Unlike humans, trees do not heal or recover from wounds. Instead, they attempt to seal off the area through a process called compartmentalization,” says Alison Fulton, Regional Urban Ecologist with the Texas A&M Forest Service. “If this same tree is damaged repeatedly around the trunk, then the tree could die from girdling.”
Fulton recommends keeping string trimmers at least a few feet from all tree trunks, regardless of tree age. A mulch ring is the best protection: no deeper than 3 inches, a few inches from the trunk, and at least a few feet wide. That buffer eliminates the need to bring a trimmer anywhere near the bark.
Read more: Lawn Edging Ideas
DIY edging vs. hiring a pro
If you mow your own lawn, edging is part of weekly lawn care. A pass along the driveway and sidewalk takes a few minutes with a string trimmer or blade edger. String trimmers run $95 to $350, and a dedicated lawn edger costs $30 to $300, depending on whether you buy manual or powered. You’ll also need to replace your trimmer line periodically.
Hiring a pro makes sense if you have a lot of hardscape borders, aggressive Bermuda or Zoysia creeping into beds, or you’d rather bundle edging with your regular mowing service. Most lawn care companies include edging as part of a standard mow visit, which typically runs$48 to $207, depending on lawn size and location.
FAQs
Late morning after dew dries, or early evening when it’s cooler. Avoid edging wet grass since clippings stick to hardscape and the trimmer line doesn’t cut as cleanly.
Yes, to a point. Clean edges create a physical gap that slows grass from creeping into beds. But edging alone won’t stop weeds. Pair it with mulch or herbicide for real control.
No. Robot mowers cut the lawn interior but don’t touch borders. You still need a trimmer or edger along driveways, sidewalks, and beds.
Stay on top of your edges
To keep your lawn looking great and to make it easy, just edge every time you mow. You could get away with skipping here and there if you have slow-growing grass like tall fescue. But if you have Bermuda or Zoysia, you will need to do regular edging to keep your landscape looking sharp.
Ready for clean edges without the weekend work? Lawn Love can connect you with local lawn care professionals who include edging with every mowing visit.
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Main Image: Person edging lawn along sidewalk edge. Image Credit: Schaefer Photography / Adobe Stock
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