Building stepping stones and pavers into the garden
Stepping stone paths in the landscape are perfect to lead through fencing. Or, as I’ve mentioned before, you can use them to funnel traffic across lawns to reduce wear and tear. Use them singly to herald an entryway. Or even paint your name or your street address on a paver as an entry marker. Ring a patio or play area with stepping stones or make passage to a compost pile easier with a stepping stone path. Decorative stepping stones can reduce tracked dirt and mud and keep traffic from straying onto more delicate areas. They can be grouped together to form an informal patio or seating area. You can mix fancy stepping stones into a larger area of stone or cement, too.
To set single stepping stones or pavers, cut out the soil beneath to match the shape of the piece you are using. You can outline the shape with a stick or marking paint. Then dig down a couple of inches deeper than the depth of the paver. Pouring a one or two inch layer of builder’s sand to line the bottom will form a cushion so your paver is more likely to sit flat, steady and less likely to shift over time. If the area you are setting them on is not very stable, then dig a couple of inches deeper still and add a layer of ¾” gravel or road base under the sand. This should keep them solidly in place in your landscape for years.
For a larger area of outdoor flooring, dig out your area to at least three or four inches in depth. Deeper is better. If you have the room, spread a layer of gravel or road base one to three inches deep (depending on have big your area is and how much weight you want to support). Then top the area with at an inch or two of builder’s sand. The deeper your foundation, the more stable your surface will be. Set your stepping stones or pavers on the smoothed and leveled base and fill with more sand or gravel. You can also inter-plant with ground-hugging plants like Dymondia, mosses or Thyme or you can plant lawn grass between more widely set stones. The closer you set your stonework, the smoother your flooring will be. A patio that will be furnished with seating, tables or other small-footed objects should be built with very stones that are carefully set together leaving gaps no bigger than ¾ of an inch. Check with a licensed contractor if you want to build areas that will support considerable weight, like pads for structures or driveways.
You can use stepping stones for straight-forward practical use. If you have a dry river bed and don’t want to build a bridge for crossing, you can set a meandering pathway of flat areas to step across the rocky channel. Rather than carving stairs up a hillside, you can sculpt out flat areas and set stepping stones flat on top to create stair surfaces. Consider placing pavers around areas that can get messy or muddy like around hose bibs or valves where it would be handy to have a flat, solid place to stand or work. You can even floor small areas like in greenhouses or around a gazebo.
Have fun designing and choosing materials for your paving. By using stepping stones and pavers in your landscape you can transform the ordinary garden into something special. And they are easy to install and easy to move if you change your mind later. A stepping stone design can make your landscape unique, artistic and serve double-duty by being helpfully practical.
Pavers, Stepping Stones, Cast Concrete or Flagstone
One way to make your garden more artistic and practical without spending a lot of money is to use pavers, stepping stones, cast brick, blocks or flagstone.
Pavers and stepping stones are ideal to make pathways throughout the landscape. They are decorative, make passage easier and save wear and tear on lawns. You can use them together to construct patio areas, too. Paving with stepping stones, cast block and other pieced materials is a trend that is growing in popularity. These materials offer a form of permeable paving that is proving to be a better way to hardscape than pouring large, solid, flat concrete areas. They are better for drainage when it rains, easier to install and are more flexible since you can change your mind at any time and move the materials to get the effects you want. And with good designing, pavers and stepping stones can create decorative highlights in your landscape.
Avoid straight lines unless the theme of your garden is formal or geometrical. Allow your pathways to curve and meander. And make sure they lead somewhere. Paths that lead nowhere are not very useful and can look downright silly. Paths can be used to break up large spaces and long garden areas. You can use them to lead you to convenient areas for utility servicing or plant maintenance. They make the passageway to a shed, water feature or another structure into something decorative as well as practical. And a slightly curved pathway up to a bench or hammock creates an irresistible invitation to relax in the landscape. Even if you don’t have the proper layout for building paths, you can still use pavers and stepping stones to outline boundaries of different parts of your landscape or cluster them to crate a patio area.
Stepping stones and pavers can be made of an assortment of materials. You can find simple cast concrete rounds or squares at the local home stores or check into specialty shops to find designs for just about any taste. Flip through catalogs to discover artistic stepping stones for sale. Brick can be set in groups creating patterns or laid in rows to make a path. Flagstones are ready-made pavers that offer the beauty of natural stone. Stone can also be cut into whatever shapes you want. Or you can pour concrete to make large stepping stones in a variety of designs. Additional interest can be created by coloring, stamping or adding patterns to the cement before it dries. Even slices of tree trunks make rounds and can be used as stepping surfaces that will eventually break down over time. But they give a great woodsy feel for years. And they are an ornamental and useful way to recycle a fallen or cut tree while saving on the cost of haul-away.
To use stepping stones in the landscape creatively, you can use a mixture of colored pieces or even materials to invent pictures or designs. These will function like mosaic flooring. Another possibility is to lay sections that alternate with two or three different materials creating a checkerboard, stripes or other patters. Or you can outline one material with another for effect. In short, the ways to make your design into art with various materials is completely up to you.
You might find interesting pre-designed stepping stones available in a variety of stores that carry hand-crafted items as well as at your local gardening suppliers. If you want to shop on the Internet or flip through catalogs, you will find all kinds of stepping stones from hand-painted designs of your favorite theme to elaborately sculpted stones with interesting materials embedded. I have a friend who has collected hers from various craft fairs. Another makes her own by pressing stained glass into cast concrete rounds before the cement hardens. You can even find an interesting assortment of stepping stones, rock and pre-cast cement pavers at the big home stores. For those of you who can paint, look for outdoor paints and personalize inexpensive generic materials to make them unique or turn them into works of art.
You can use a group of materials like bricks to make a section that reads as one big stepping stone, or you can separate your materials like single chunks of flagstone. If you are into making crafts, there are lots of ways to cast, cut and create your own stepping stones. You can make molds and cast plaster or cement. Adding pieces of pottery or pressing in your children’s handprints are a couple of ways you can make your pavers unique. Use your imagination to design and create your own effects with pavers, stepping stones, cast concrete or flagstone.
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