View of the side yard from the back of the house, standing near one of the septic risers seen in the next picture.
How to transition grass to rock in side yard?
by
Pbrenner
+13
I have a very shady side yard (in the Texas hill country) that I am thinking of putting rock down rather than fight the shade growing things. I've put down decomposed granite in a few other areas of my yard - to make a fire pit area, to edge some raised beds, etc. I have no artistic vision on how to transition from the grassy areas to the new rock - I'd like it to look as nice as possible and not just a straight line dividing grass from rock. I've used an old hose to try curvy lines, but they don't look right either. I have all kinds of stuff available to make it interesting (garden junk kind of stuff) and not just be a bunch of rock.
I do intend to clean and paint/stain the little deck (it's off my laundry room door), and build a fence to hide the A/C unit. I've added some pictures of the side yard, and a picture of one of the areas I put in DG. Is DG good for this area? Or should I go with something more 'gravelly'? Rain coming off the little deck roof does beat up the ground, so I thought some paving stones there might help.
Thanks in advance, I appreciate ANY advice or ideas anyone can offer!
Back corner of the yard. I dug out the grass in the corner to make the fire pit area. The fake plastic rock should be over the taller black septic cover :-). The green septic risers were just recently put in. I'd like to disguise the green covers too
Another view of the septic covers, lol - just to the right is where the dark shade part begins and the grass gets a lot sparser.
Side yard view from the front of the house. The grass from here to just before the A/C unit is in pretty good condition, and the dogs like to lay over here when it's hot out, so I'd like to keep this grass.
An area on the sunny side of the house where I put down DG. I built the planters from tin from a storage building that used to be on my property. I have lots of it left to build more things with.
I created a fire pit area in my shady yard using pea gravel. You can read all about it here https://www.homeroad.net/2016/08/adding-pea-gravel-to-fire-pit-area.html
Here's a link for going from grass to stone:
https://homeguides.sfgate.com/change-front-garden-grass-gravel-21011.html
I think edging with a different type of rock will make it look better. I did this years ago with pea gravel and it’s quite a bit of maintenance to keep weeds from blowing in and growing.
buy a product that kills grass and weeds spray (follow instructions) then yo can add rock
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaY521-SYtY
https://www.parsonsrocks.com/how-to-replace-grass-with-rocks-a-step-by-step-guide/
https://www.hometalk.com/diy/outdoor/garden/finishing-touch-with-edging-stones-3832314?expand_all_questions=1&expand_all_questions=1&expand_all_questions=1#!
Finishing Touch With Edging Stones
Hello. How do you feel about ground covers?
Additionally here are some transition ideas below.
For the best local professional advice I would highly suggest contacting your cooperative extension. These offices are manned by volunteer master gardeners on site there waiting to answer the communities questions that know your local situation quite well.
Master gardeners are required to volunteer back designated hours ( plus continuing education) each year to maintain MG certification -this community outreach and education is their goal.
Most plants success depend on their hardness to geographic planting zones. presenting weather conditions and local soil and sunlight exposure.
Your local experts should have the ideal suggestions for your need.
Get some heavy duty plastic from Home Depot or Lowes. Put it down before you put your gravel down. It will stop the weeds. You can use pavers if you want to put down topsoil and level the ground then add the pavers. Make sure you slope the area away from your house, you do not want flooding.
Pinterest has some ideas for you to look at:
https://www.pinterest.com/michaleromeis/deck-to-grass-transition/
Pick out the spot to change mark it out with 4 sticks then put down weed fabric cover all area get the spikes to hold it down you only need about 6 .after that’s all done put your rocks down start at the wall and work down
If it were me, I would put in "walkable ground cover" which is precisely as it's named. I've found some sites for you to read about those for shady areas in Texas. The results are from around San Antonio so if they aren't correct Google your growing zone. These all have plant lists you can consider using and will make the yard FANTASTIC with differing colors and textures if you choose to plant more than 1 type!
https://www.rainbowgardens.biz/garden-tips/groundcovers-for-san-antonio-replacing-turf/
https://www.stepables.com/3/STEPABLE_All_Terrain_GroundCover_Shady_Area_Plants.html
https://www.statesman.com/NEWS/20180620/Ground-covers-help-fill-in-difficult-areas-with-green-in-the-garden
I strongly suggest putting down heavy black plastic under the rock. Otherwise it will work it's way down into the soil.
I would try re-seeding your lawn. Fall is a good time to do it. I need to re-seed my lawn as well, since we have mostly weeds! I have PF in both feet. There are stretches you can do to help your feet, too. Perhaps you can put a yoga mat or a picnic blanket or sheet down on your lawn when you want to do some stretches? My twins leave for college this month (sigh!). I plan to start doing early morning yoga for my stiff achy body, and also as a way to feel calmer and happier. Check out these stretches: https://pin.it/1PzCk5v
Cut down real low, Use a commercial grade landscape fabric, then your favorite rock
Seems like a fire pit with a gravel base, seating and some type of table could be the break in the lawn you are looking for. Then after the fire pit transition to the cement.