How to Build a Rock Garden in you own yard.
You may be surprised at how easy it to build a garden with rocks!
How to Build a Rock Garden
This is a simple guide for most anyone wanting to build a rock garden.
Your rock garden can be easily personalized as well.
Did you see my article for Creative Uses for Tree Stumps ?
That article offers ideas for making leftover tree stumps part of your garden.
This article for making a rock garden may work nicely with a tree stump too!
Rock gardens can be more interesting when you add interesting rocks as accents. You can find a selection of interesting rocks for a rock garden here.
People often ask what is the purpose of a rock garden.
Let me first start by defining what a rock garden is.
A rock garden is a garden or display made with rocks rather than a pile of rocks placed on the ground.
There are many reasons for making a rock garden in your yard including:
- Adding beauty to your yard.
- To lessen lawn maintenance including mowing and watering.
- As a landscape edging.
- Or, as part of a water garden.
You may be wondering what do you put in a rock garden.
Obviously, you put rocks in your rock garden
However, a rock garden can also include other items.
Plants are often used in rock gardens.
Some plants are used to add color or texture to a rock garden.
Other plants may be added to blend in with the rocks to make the rocks more interesting.
Tips for making a rock garden.
It is a good idea to start with a small garden and let it evolve.
This will allow you to make changes as needed as you go.
More tips for you
- Make your rock garden more interesting by have a focal point. The focal point can be a statue or a rock that is significantly larger than the others.
- Personalize your rock garden by adding painted rocks. This is especially a fun idea if you have children who like to paint rocks.
- When selecting a location for your rock garden, take into consideration what may become an issue with that location. This included pipes, sewers, or tree roots.
Preparing the area for your rock garden.
Once you have selected the perfect location for your rock garden you will need to prepare the land.
This means clearing out anything that is already there.
Here is what you need to do to prepare the location.
- Remove any grass, rocks, weeds or plants that may already be in the location.
- If you have drainage concerns or will be planting plants in your rock garden, consider adding a four to six inch layer of sand and gravel and then a layer of soil.
- Place landscape fabric down to prevent weeds from growing and rocks from settling.
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You may also be interested in these ideas.
How to design your rock garden.
Start by selecting a focal point for the garden. If your rock garden is going to be used as an edging for plants or a tree, you can skip this as what you are edging will be the focal point.
The focal point should be the largest item(s) that will be in your rock garden.
- Larger rock(s).
- Stepping stones.
- Statues.
- Water.
Selecting the rocks that you will use in your garden.
Once you have decided upon the focal point for your rock garden, you can select the rocks that will support the focal point.
The supporting rocks in your garden should be uniform in some way.
- Choose rocks that are similar in size.
- Or, rocks that are similar in color.
- If your focal point is of one color, your supporting rocks can be shades of one color that all complement the the focal point (think shades of gray for example).
How to place rocks in a rock garden.
Step One: place the rocks in the garden.
First place the larger rocks or focal points in the rock garden. Then use medium sized rocks to form an outline of the garden if you need one. Lastly, place the supporting or smaller rocks in your rock garden.
Step Two: add plants or other items to your
Adding plants that are potted is the easiest way to do this as you simply need to make a spot in the rocks or on a rock for the plant. Otherwise, you can add soil to the rock garden and plant the plants.
Step Three: maintaining a rock garden.
Keep an eye on your rock garden as weeds may pop up or rocks may get out of place from time to time.
How to Build a Rock Garden, a simple guide for beginners wanting to construct a basic and attractive rock garden.
