Plain and Simple
2 Materials
$150
3 Days
Easy
This area of the front yard needs help - the lawn had a bug infestation that killed the grass and I just couldn't get it to grow properly again. Also, the soil under the palm tree needs too much mulch, fertilizer and water to make a new flower bed viable.
My sister in law suggested I take out all the grass from under the palm, right up to the existing little walk way (to the left of the picture) and put down gravel. At first I thought it was a bit drastic, but went with the idea anyway as she's a fantastic gardener with vision.
So I sprinkled flour on the lawn - to mark the line where I wanted the stone part to start - measured the area roughly, ordered the stone, bricks and went to the hardware shop to buy (100 micron) drop sheets to cover exposed soil. This is not a fool proof method to stop weeds, but it will help some.
David, a gardener from Malawi helped. He made quick work of digging up the grass and also moving the exposed soil. The base of this area needed to be lowered, so that when it's filled with stone, the surface would be more or less level with the rest of the lawn.
The good pieces of grass were taken to the back garden for re-planting in another area where it was needed.
The harvested soil was distributed over the lawn.
Grass and some soil removed, now for the plastic.
My order of "black" stone arrived, a huge heap. To me it seemed just grey, but it is sort of blackish... I liked it. The paving bricks were used to form a barrier between existing paving and the lawn.
After that, we started spreading out the stone. Quite a job! Who knew stone is so heavy.......
My little 5 year old niece wanted to help as this looked like fun, so she did her bit with a leaf rake....
The end product:
- It was cost effective
- It is water wise
- I got rid of the ugly patchy grass
- The area could be used for occasional extra parking,
- or I could put flower pots all over
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Comments
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2 of 20 comments
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I said, 'gravel? what?" but when you were finished it looks VERY nice!
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That is hard work. The end result is lovely. Thanks.
Frequently asked questions
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Wouldn’t a breathable membrane be more suitable.
Do you not get much rain?
Why did you choose plastic.... it holds water, and in about a year it tears from heat and sun.... and the gravel pokes holes in it when you walk or drive on it.... a good quality landscape fabric would have been a much better choice for longevity