Choosing the best garden stones for your home

If you're looking to create an attractive and serene outdoor space for your home, stones can add interest and depth to practically any garden. There are many different types of stones that are popular in gardens, and the type you choose will depend on what you're planning to do with them. So, with so much choice, how do you know which are the best garden stones for your home?

Determine their purpose

Before buying stones for your garden, ask yourself why you would like to use the stones and what you'd like to use them for. Do you need to fill a large area, such as a driveway or path, or create landscaping within a sloping garden? Or, would you like to create an attractive border for a pond or pathway? Perhaps you're looking for stones for creating a beautiful rockery, or maybe you're looking for pebbles that can complement a water feature. Stones have so many different uses and are natural and practical solutions to a variety of gardening issues.

Knowing the types

Once you've determined the purpose of your garden stones, it's time to find the right type of stone to do the job. These are some common types of garden stones and what they're best at:

Gravel

This is a rough stone that is supplied in all shapes and sizes. It generally comes from breaking down larger rocks to form smaller yet tough pieces. Garden gravels are particularly popular for driveways and paths, due to their ultra-durability and low maintenance traits.

Pebbles

These are natural stones that are popular for a range of decorative garden projects. They're round in shape due to natural erosion and are supplied in a variety of hues. Typically, pebbles have a diameter of around 2.5 inches, making them ideal for use in ponds, water features and border creation.

Cobbles

These are manufactured stones, which can be supplied in any size between around two and ten inches in diameter. These stones are particularly pretty due to their rounded, uniform shape, so you'll often find them in decorative areas, on top of soil and sometimes used to form bumpy and crunchy pathways.

Slate chippings

Slate is a versatile stone that can be broken down into chippings. These are usually supplied in a uniform colour; either a dark grey or a slightly lighter grey. They are popular for creating rockeries, paths and driveways, as well as attractive and contemporary edging for a range of gardens. 

Gabion stone

Gabion is used to fill cages and wire structures, which are typically used to landscape gardens and control river embankments. These are easy to install, requiring little foundational work, so are ideal for garden projects of a variety of sizes. They can be used to create attractive banks and walls, and act as a natural drainage system for water.

 

Don't be afraid to mix and match your garden stones!

When creating interesting outdoor areas, stones can bring spaces to life. You don't need to stick to one type of stone; if you're creating a pathway, cobbles of various random sizes can make a real impact. Likewise, if you're creating a rockery, using a combination of larger, jagged rocks can really work well when contrasted against areas with small, rounded pebbles. You might also want to consider colours when you select your stone; areas of grey slate can look amazing next to areas of pale pebbles or cobbles, and both can really accentuate the natural greens of plants and lawns.

Use stones to create landscaping

If you're looking to create steps or areas at different elevations in your garden, landscaping stones are great choices. These stones are simple to install; you can either lay them straight onto your garden to create simple steps, or you can build them into wire casings to create attractive elevations.

Stones for navigation

You can lead people on a magical adventure in your garden using the right stones. Stones like cobbles and pebbles can be used in combination with larger natural tiles to create interesting and inviting pathways, and attention can be drawn to areas such as flower beds and rockeries by creating pretty stone borders. If you have a socialising area you want to section off from the rest of your garden, stones can create borders as well as interesting, crunchy surfacing. The possibilities really are endless.

In conclusion

Decorative aggregates open up a world of possibilities for the keen garden designer. From filling large areas to creating small borders and features, there are stones fit for every purpose. Stones create excellent natural drainage systems and can help plants to flourish while adding beautifully natural aesthetics to gardens of all styles.

VIEW ALL GARDEN STONES