You don’t have to be a skilled mason to lay a
natural stone path like this one. If you have a strong back and an eye for
fitting jigsaw puzzles, you can weave a casual garden path like this just about
anywhere in your yard. There’s no thick base to install or difficult
cutting and fitting—you just lay natural stone over a simple sand
bed.
You’ll be moving a lot of dirt and stone, so a good
shovel and wheelbarrow will pay off here. To simplify the grass removal, we
rented a power sod cutter ($45 per half day, and you’ll need a pickup
truck to haul this brute). For smaller paths, a kick-type sod cutter would work
fine ($20 per day to rent). Buy a heavy rubber mallet or deadblow hammer ($10
at hardware stores) to settle the stone into the sand bed. If your project
requires a step or retaining wall like ours, you’ll also need a level and
a hand tamper (Photo 5). Buy a tamper for $28 or rent one for
$8 per day. Finally, you’ll need a garage broom to sweep the soil mixture
into the cracks, and a good pair of heavy leather gloves to protect your
hands.
You’ll Order Tons of
Stone
For our path, we chose a locally quarried limestone called
Chilton. The 1-1/2 to 2-1/2 in. thick “stepper” stones cost about
$300 per ton (a ton covers about 90 sq. ft.), but costs vary widely depending
on what’s locally available. Measure the length of your path and multiply
this by its width to determine the square footage. Then add about 15 percent.
Our 3-ft. wide by 70-ft. long path required about 3 tons of
stone.
Check the Yellow Pages under “Stone, Natural”
or call local landscaping suppliers to find stone in your area. Visit the stone
yard to select the stone, since it varies in color, texture and cost. This is
also a good time to discuss delivery options. Usually the stone will be stacked
on pallets and dropped off near the street.
In addition to the steppers, we needed about a ton of
8-in. wide by 3- to 5-in. thick stone for the wall and a few 6-in. thick stones
to build the step (Photos 4 and 6). Your stone
dealer can help you figure the amount of stone you’ll need for special
projects like this.
Because this garden path is informal, we decided to set
the stone on a 2- to 3-in. thick sand bed rather than the 6-in. deep compacted
gravel base used under more heavily traveled walks and patios. Although
you’ll spend a lot less time digging and moving dirt with our method, you
may have to reset a sunken or tipped stone every few years, because the base
isn’t as stable.
Landscape suppliers, sand and gravel companies, or your stone
supplier will charge about $20 per cubic yard for the sand, plus delivery fees.
Divide the square footage of your path by 108 to calculate how many cubic yards
of sand you’ll need for a 3-in. deep base.
Finally, you’ll need some potting soil and mulch or
compost to fill the spaces between stones. We mixed equal amounts of soil and
sifted compost in a wheelbarrow and swept it into the cracks (Photo 10).
Use Steps and Low Walls to Manage Sloping
Sites
You can lay a stone path like this almost anywhere
that’s not too steep for comfortable walking. If after laying out your
path (Photo 1), you notice a section that seems too
steep, plan on building in a step to break the path into sections that are more
level (Photos 5 and 6). You’ll have to buy a few
stones about 6 in. thick and the right length to form the step. Then level them
on a bed of packed gravel and fill behind them with sand before you continue
laying path stones.
If your path runs along the edge of a slope like ours,
level it by digging it into the slope and building a low retaining wall
(Photos 3 and 4). We simply stacked wall stones
on a compacted gravel bed for our retaining wall, but if it’s more than a
foot tall, consider stronger construction techniques.
A Sand Bed Makes It Easy to Level the
Stones
Laying the stone is like assembling a big, heavy jigsaw
puzzle (Photo 8). Spread the stones out on the ground so
you can pick shapes and colors that fit. Use a wheelbarrow or a two-wheel dolly
to move heavy stones, and always lift with your legs, not your back.
Don’t worry about tight fits. The path will look more natural if you
leave a few irregular spaces and an occasional stone jutting out into the
yard.
Start laying stones against walls, steps or other
established borders. Then work out and along the path (Photo 8). Loosely assemble a half dozen stones
and stand back to take a look at the arrangement. Reposition the stones if you
like, and then set these stones before moving on.
The goal for placing the stones is to keep all the tops
even. Adjust the height of each stone by scooping out or adding sand (Photo 9). As you gain experience, you’ll
be able to look at the thickness of the stone and judge how much sand to leave.
We staked up string as a rough guide so that instead of waving up and down, our
path dips gradually over its length to follow the natural terrain (Photo 9).
Complete the path by filling the joints between stones
with soil mix and planting a durable ground cover (Photo 11). We planted creeping thyme in the
larger spaces. Eventually the thyme will spread and fill the cracks for a
lowmaintenance, fragrant path. Check with your local nursery for advice on
durable, spreading plants for your climate. If you’d rather not grow
plants, fill the spaces with mulch or finely shredded bark.
Lay Out The Path
Click image to enlarge.
1. Mark the path’s edge with special
upside-down spray marking paint. Spray along the path’s edge outlined by
the stakes.
Click image to enlarge.
2. Remove the sod in the area of the path with a
sod cutter. Set the sod cutter to maximum depth to minimize additional digging.
Dig out the path area to about 5 in. deep to allow for 3 in. of sand and 2-in.
thick stone.
Build Walls and Steps
3. Pour and pack
gravel into an 8-in. Deep trench for the retaining wall footing only. Spread
the gravel in 2-in. layers, packing each layer with a hand tamper before adding
the next. Use a level and straightedge to level the final layer before you pack
it down.
4. Stack the stone for the low retaining wall on
the compacted gravel base. Stagger the joints in the stones and set each row
back 1/2 in. behind the face of the stones below so the wall “leans
into” the hill. Pack soil behind the stones as you build the
wall.
Click image to enlarge.
5. Tamp gravel in 2-in. Layers to form an 8-in.
Deep base under the step.
6. Set 6 x 8-in. Wall stone into a 3-in. Bed of
sand to form the step. Settle and level the stones with a rubber mallet or a
hammer and block of wood. Then fill behind the step stones with packed sand and
set the path stones even with the top of the step.
Set The
Stone
7.
Spread a 3-in. Layer of sand over the path. Use a rake to smooth
the sand about 2 in. below the surface of the lawn.
Click image to enlarge.
8. Arrange the stone on the sand, mixing shapes and
colors to create a natural-looking path. Leave about 2 in. between stones for
plants to fill in.
Click image to enlarge.
9. Tie a string to stakes about an inch above the
finished height of the path for a guideline. The string should follow the
natural slope of the path; it doesn’t have to be level. Adjust the depth
of the sand so the tops of the stones align under the string. Wiggle the stones
into place and settle them down into the sand by pounding on the top with a
rubber mallet.
Click image to enlarge.
10. Fill
the cracks between stones with a 50/50 mix of potting soil and sifted compost
or bark mulch. Spread the soil mix and sweep it into the cracks with a
broom.
11. Plant creeping thyme or
another durable spreading plant in the larger spaces. Dig down into the sand
base to provide room for the roots. Loosen the roots and spread them out in the
hole, then refill around the plant with potting mix and water the
plant.
