Now that the cooler weather has arrived, you might be thinking about getting outside to work on a new landscaping project. The fall season is a great time to plant trees, shrubs, and bulbs and do other projects on your property. It’s also a great time to add stone features and luxuries. Whether for practical use or to increase your enjoyment for when you are ready to kick back and relax, there are many ways you can use stone in your landscape.
Around trees and plant beds
While you are doing fall chores and getting your landscape ready to look beautiful come spring, add stone around your trees, shrubs, bulbs, and flower beds. Decorative gravel comes in many varieties of sizes, shapes, and color blends for beautiful beds. It is a great alternative to mulch. It helps reduce maintenance so you won’t need to touch it up for years. It also can be used as borders around plant beds where it will help keep dirt and debris in place during the upcoming wet winter weather. Plus, gravel is slightly better for weed control than mulch. Now that the weeds are going dormant, the gravel will help give a head start to weed control in the spring.
Along walkways and patios
If you are tired of trying to grow grass or plants in a shaded, hard-to-grow area of your yard, it might be time for a new strategy. Since what is left of the grass or plants is going dormant, the area may look even more barren. Revise your strategy by converting these bare areas to usable walkways or patios. Flagstone is a nice option to use with its abundant color palate and unlimited patterns. You are sure to find the right match that fits your style and converts the space to one more useful and requires less maintenance.
As an added luxury feature
Take your backyard to another level by creating an outdoor haven with stone luxuries that will give you much satisfaction and enjoyment for years to come. Use dry stack stone or fieldstone to build a fire pit seating area where friends and family can hang out after a long fall day. Or construct a fireplace and outdoor kitchen for the ultimate relaxation spot.
To enhance design features
Working outside can be exhilarating when the leaves change color and a light breeze is in the air. Features in your landscape design can further exhilarate the senses. Imagine a stone waterfall or large rocks placed around a small pond with a few stone benches. Stone also can enhance your home’s architectural features when you use it to add a façade or columns.
