Hardscaping has a practical purpose, but it also can have an ornamental purpose in your landscaping design. When using pebbles, boulders, dry stack, and other stones for ornamental purposes in your landscape, you add beauty that blends the function of the stone with nature to create an outdoor work of art.

There are many different types of decorative stones to use in a landscape. Choose from crushed stone, gravel, and native rock in a variety of sizes, textures, and colors. Depending on the size and type of stone that you choose, your options are limitless for adding an ornamental touch to make a beautiful and unique outdoor setting.

Six Ways to Give Your Landscape an Ornamental Touch with Stone

1. Use stone as a groundcover to add texture and color to different areas of a garden, or around driveways, walkways, pools, and recreation areas. Be creative by making your own design along a grass border or by widening an existing sidewalk. Specialty crushed stone, river rocks, and lightweight aggregates can help give an unforgettable natural look to any outdoor area.
2. Mix and match large boulders with an area of smaller pebbles. You can add two to three boulders to a garden bed and then surround the area with a border of pebbles. The larger the boulder, the more prominent the appearance. For a less prominent effect, switch it up by adding smaller pebbles as mulch around plants and then place medium-sized boulders or river rock around the bed in place of edging.
3. Create something special using boulders. Place one large boulder or a few together in a decorative display. You can choose a location that almost implies a story. If you have a pond, randomly place a few boulders to create a natural feel. Or if it is the structure you are looking for, choose several boulders of the same size and space them at consistent intervals in or along a garden bed.
4. Stack dry stack stones or river rock in columns or create a wall for visual height or depth. Placing four stone columns around an outdoor seating area or building a short stone wall around a patio can set apart the area by acting as a decorative frame.
5. Use dry stack stones or granite cobblestones to build an ornamental design feature. A fountain or fireplace adds luxury and beauty to any landscape. If it is a casual atmosphere you are designing, stack the stones in an offset pattern or with no particular pattern. If you want to achieve a more structured appearance, stack the stones evenly in a consistent pattern.
6. Add custom-cut limestone, bluestone, and sandstone to pool and spa copings, outdoor fireplace surrounds, and window sills and trims for ornate detailing that is sure to impress. Fabrications are custom-cut to your designs and will enhance the beauty of any outdoor space.

As a landscape architect or homeowner, you are sure to have projects where you will find unique, functional, and creative uses for stone.