Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I have a garden bed around the home that has only large bushes. The problem I am having is that there is a small slope away from the house and when it rains, it erodes away the dirt. I am thinking of putting a layer of gravel to slow/stop the erosion but I also use straw to stop the weeds. I haven't seen anyone with a setup with gravel and straw and wanted to know if it is a good idea. Thanks!
No don't do it. If you are having wash off problems plant an attractive ground cover which you can maintain. Gravel will wash into your lawn and you will have heck to pay when mowing if gravel flies from your lawn mower. Maybe a barrier of some kind is better than what you have. here in the South we use pine straw which is just pine needles or hardwood mulch. I think there is nothing tackier than white gravel in the landscape although I know it is preferred in some parts of the country. Mulch can keep soil moist, cool and can decompose to add a bit of nutrition to the soil. Fighting rocks is a pain and IMO looks bad.
Find some class II channel lining. That's just another name for rip rap in a little bit smaller stone. Line the edge of your garden with some #2 rock. It's a smaller stone than rip rap but build up some of the #2 on the garden side of the rip rap. Both of these together should hold most of the dirt in your garden.
eviel,
Go to your local stone yeard.
Drive around, you wil find them.
Rip Rap is a bigger stone, nice size stone you can still move easily
with your hands, but you won't run over it with mower.
Look for the nice ones, look for color.
I only paid about 1.00 for the bigger stones, I could easily move them.
They look nice. I had the same problem as you.
It works wonderfully.
THey also have smaller stones, but put them where they won't get into your lawn.
Use the rip rap to seperate it.
I use mulch in my beds, some pine straw, and on my hill, I don't rake the leavs
that much, I need the nutrients for my soil.
I love rocks.
THey look great when wet too.
Well, I thought about it for a while and considering I don't know how long I will live in my house (I might move in a couple of years), I decided to just put straw to minimize expenses... Thanks everyone!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.