#89 granite gravel, above, in Susanne Hudson's landscape.
Shot gravel, above, in my garden. 
In my potager, above.
This path, above, was bermuda lawn. With wheelbarrows, me & beloved Suzy, my chocolate lab, it became compacted. What to do?
Gravel. .
How it was done? Removed bermuda lawn with sod cutter. Loaded 1 ton of shot gravel in my pick-up truck. Shoveled gravel to wheelbarrow then to path. 1 hour to shovel. Total girl power.
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Used no liner, gravel dumped straight on soil. Dust, debris accumulates within 1 year on top of any liner allowing weed seeds to germinate. Why line?
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MAINTENANCE NEEDS: I blow gravel paths 1/month for 4 months each year; 2/month for 6 months each year; 4/month for 2 months each year. Every 8-9 months I sweep gravel, with a broom, up hill. Accumulated weeding time/year? 1.5 hours.
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Per square foot gravel is less maintenance than lawn.
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Gravel compacts after 1 year & needs replenishing.
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Per square foot gravel is cheaper than lawn.
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Gravel needs replenishing after 4-5 years too.
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I discovered the delights of gravel while touring the old landscapes of Europe. Late this fall a new gravel terrace is being added to my frontyard and a new gravel terrace beside the Texas Terrace for a tiny dining area.
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Garden & Be Well, XO Tara
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Stone Forest has good close-up pics of different gravels, and stone too.
8 comments:
Thanks for the lesson.
Hello Tara, gravel is one of the best things for garden paths!!!. Love the pictures of your garden.
Cariños
María Cecilia
Big thank you for the lining remark. I also plan to 'gravel' part of my garden. I thought about lining, but also was thinking that all debris create soil on the top and weeds will find way anyway.
Thanks.
If you plan to come to Europe, will you let me know? I haven't seen you on Twitter yet - are you there?
I guess here in FL I find myself needing to clean and weed much more. I need to replenish many of our paths. Gravel it will be...Thanks for the inspiration!
Tara, I love this. What about gravel over clay? Good drainage is a must?
Found you via Gardenrooms.
Deborah & the gang in OK
~..~ ^..^ ~..^
I think I need more pea gravel mulch in my parterre. I thought I had enough but the soil is heaving up through it. Why is Spring taking so long to get here?
xo
Andie
How thick do you do your pea gravel? I've read that you should do it 2" thick, but it seems like that wouldn't compact very well...
2" is a good answer.
Specific answer relies upon exact type of gravel.
Oconee Pea compacts in a day. 1.5 " would be fine.
2" is the best answer.
XO T
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