I have these stepping stones making a little path to the driveway but I need to know what to put in between them that will look nice, after I pull up that grass and weeds. My boyfriend's crazy ex-wife put gravel there (crazy for other reasons) and I actually liked it but he forbidding it again because the weedeater and lawnmower just threw the little pebbles everywhere.
Any better ideas?
Hi Tyleranice.
A couple suggestions for our area are the low growing sedums and creeping thymes as they are rugged, relatively care free and don't mind getting stepped on. Some folks here also use dwarf mondo grass as it only gets 2 to 3 inches tall.
http://www.learn2grow.com/gardeningguides/cactisucculents/featuredplants/LowGrowingSedums.aspx
http://www.humeseeds.com/efcthym.htm
http://www.mondograss.com/Dwarfmondograss.htm
This is a great site...
http://www.stepables.com/default.asp
Awesome!!! Thanks so much! Those are cool. I'm going to look at them some more and may order them.
If you don't want grass, you can try ground ivy or bunchberries. Wild strawberry and creeping phlox are also ok.
katy landscaping
Don't shoot me, but I still like the look of the pebbles.
LOL...I love all of the suggestions but the funny thing is that I think we are going to go with the pebbles/rocks after all. Sorry to everyone, except JulieQ. There were several reasons we decided to do the rocks, including some weed killer that we had sprayed there before considering plants there that will likely prevent anything from growing. After it was all suggested, my boyfriend liked the rocks better than anything else. I dug up the edging that was there but completely buried and he decided it wouldn't be a problem if we had the edging and then used bigger rocks that would into the yard as easily with wind, the lawn mower, etc. We are going to use those bigger, marble chips. I'll post a pic when we are finished.
Thanks for the suggestions. I loved all of the ideas. Those stepable things are really cool.
~Rebecca
So, this is what I ended up doing...here is the before and after picture. (oh, and I'm the original poster...using my own login instead of my friend's now).
I had the edging already but it was buried from long ago so I dug it up and put it back along the edges. I bought two bags of those marble chips for less than $7 total. Then I spray painted the pavers with paint I had already. I had to buy two more cans but those were also about $7 total. So, I did this for under $15!!
That looks really nice Becca. It has a crisp tended look to it.
Thanks! I think it looks much better. I hope all is well with you. I'm still trying to figure out the best place to put a few of the bulbs you gave me. Hopefully we can catch up soon. My lady banks lost her flowers but her leaves look fine with some new growth so I hope she is ok. Talk to you later!
Have a good one....I have some young crapemyrtles for ya if you want them.
Looks great but, hope you can keep the area weed free between the larger slabs, I would have went for the Creeping Thyme as you just run the mower over it while cutting the grass along side the path and also when you step on the Thyme, it sends up the most beautiful perfume they also attract butterfly etc, you have done a lot of work on your area of pathway so just enjoy it and remember, a garden is never finished and over the years either our tastes change or our ideas change, so your garden with evolve and grow with you too. Good luck, WeeNel.
Agree with WeeNell, do what you like, and as your tastes evolve you can update things. In my yard something like your original look would fit better in my landscape than your new look, but what makes YOU happy is what is important.
Well, before I had any intentions of fooling with the spot, I sprayed some weed killer that supposedly sticks around for months so you can't plant anything on top of it. That is the main reason I couldn't plant anything there. That's also how I plan to keep weeds out. I actually dug up all of the grass between them and sprayed the spaces with that weed killer. So, I have to stick with the rocks for now and plan to just keep the weeds out by spraying once in a while and pulling anything that gets through.
I also liked the creeping thyme but the boyfriend didn't like any of the steppable plants. This is in the front of the house so I like the crisp look in that location. I like the creeping plants between stepping stones in more of a lush, backyard garden, which we definitely don't have in the front.
I'm sure it will change when I have a bigger budget and when I'm tired of this look.
Becca, you have already learned a lot about gardening, for a newbie, it's a lesson you wont forget.
1st, budget plays the biggest part in any gardening project, you have to always think "what will it cost and what are will the returns be and the personal enjoyment.
2nd, you have found out that if you use weedkiller's or any chemicals, there is also another cost, either your held up with your planting scheme or you spread the killer / chemical onto some other area by wind / spray or spillage.
3rd, you now know that no matter what our dreams are for our garden, we have sometimes to please our other halves, hard IF they don't have the vision you have.
4th, Gardening is never as cheep as people who don't have one assumes, they think you just tinker around and hey presto, your garden is beautiful.
The best tip (toungue in cheek) I can give is this, when you have an area ready for plants, you know what you want as you have a list, so go along to the garden stores and get the seeds, plants, bulbs or shrubs you wanted for the project, get home and plant them or pot them up, then when the area is looking great, your other half will ask "how much did that lot cost" I always cut the price in half so he cant have a heart attack, he always Say's "that store must have seen you coming" BUT when his friends come around and they begin to admire HIS garden and all HIS hard work and his chest expands just a bit, you know he's proud of your work and effort, ha, ha, ha, devious I know but the last lesson to learn is gardening is never easy in so many ways, he, he, he.
Now however, I'm an old hat and been gardening for years, my husband has a complete change of views from when we owned our very own 1st garden, we still have different opinions on how to do things, how much upkeep it will be or where to plant a tree etc, but we both know what the garden needs (well I tell him and he does the hard work)
You just enjoy your new garden (both of you), you will never get the garden you want for many years and cost is a big decider on how much you Can do in a year, but planning, dreaming and growing things from seeds or cuttings is not expensive so let your dream begin and enjoy.
Loads of luck, WeeNel.
Lawn mower will still pick up the marble, be careful, and you will need to be sure if you mulch mow that the clippings don't settle into the rocks and compost, chuckle, it is a cute path, a bit rigid for me, but thats just personal preferences, good luck
I like the Becca's idea fill the lawn path with marble chips its really cheap and looks very good.
Delayed response...haven't been here in a while.
Just wanted to say thanks for the comments and compliments. I know there were many possibilities for this path but the key was that I work with what I already had and spent as little money possible. I could have made many different paths but not with what I already had. I was excited to do it all for under $15 by painting the stepping stones (which are really expensive if you buy them new, by the way) and digging up that black edging stuff (which has kept the marble chips from flying around when mowing or weed-eating) and then simply buying the marble chips. I sprayed weed killer first so haven't had a problem with grass or weeds growing between the pavers and the boyfriend simply uses the blower to remove grass clippings after yard work.
So all I bought was paint and the marble chips!
Thanks again!
~Becca
Yep that's a big part of any of my garden projects....trying to save $ and work with what you have
Plant grass between stepping stones in a lawn or edging a lawn. Grass is easy to care for and trim, and will provide a secure anchor for stepping stones. Whether your stepping stones are made out of rocks, concrete, wood or any other materials, grass is a beautiful buffer between them. This type of planting will not require special care or watering, and offers a relatively low-maintenance options for most home gardeners. Brick is also a maintenance-free solution for what to place between stepping stones, though time and planning and cutting bricks to correct shapes may take a little time.
