ADD A WALKWAY To Your Garden

By JP, April 17, 2008

A garden can be a wonderful place to nurture your green thumb, and express yourself. Adding a walkway to guide you and your guests through your garden is an attractive and useful way to add character and texture to your outdoor living space.

A walkway can be as simple as stepping-stones or as elaborate as multicolored cobblestone. You can keep it simple, or incorporate designs into it. It’s really up to you. Stone can provide you with that natural feel. A simple garden would benefit from a decorative gravel path, or maybe even flagstone. Or if you choose, a structured pattern like brick can add a new dimension to your garden. Add something as simple as a bench and you have a nice focal point for you and your guests to sit and enjoy your outdoor space.

Construction of a walkway is relatively simple. Straight walkways are easy to layout because they use straight lines and 90-degree angles. But you may find that adding curves to your design will give a more fluid affect. You can do this kind of layout easily. Simply lay out the border with rope or a garden hose.

After you get your layout like you want it, the sod and soil will have to be removed to a depth that will make room for the base material, sand, and whatever type of surface you have chosen for your walkway. The base can be compacted soil or fine gravel known as crusher run, which should be compacted as well in order to give a solid, flat surface. The next layer is usually leveling sand, which makes it possible to level natural stone more easily, and is used to form a level surface for pavers as well. You need to wet the leveling sand and then smooth it out using a 2×4 or other long, straight edge to do the job. Then it’s just a matter of getting your stone or pavers down. Make sure you secure the edges with a border, or more compacted soil, so your stone or pavers can’t move.

Explore the possibilities and have fun.