A New Path

The area (figure B) from James' garage access door to his pool patio was a trouble spot. "For nearly four years, this was an absolute wasteland, a messy mix of grass and weeds," he says. "And worse yet, for days following a rain, it was a shoe-sucking mud hole!"

Just a few weeks ago James hired a contractor to dig up all the weeds, backfill with gravel and cover the entire area with flagstone (figure C). James also transformed a garden bed that was plagued by a dozen or more neglected trees, various overgrown vines, old rotten railroad ties used as retaining walls and a large metal barn that was unstable, unsafe and an eyesore. To revive the area, he terraced the distressed space with stone to create new beds (figure D), installed new fencing and plans to fill the beds with new plants during the next few weeks.

James' choice is a type of limestone called Tennessee Sterling in a variety of medium to large pieces. Because he prefers the color and thickness of this stone, he decides it's worth the price, but you can easily find stone for less. Some of the stones are quite large, which means they're also quite heavy.

Creating a path isn't as simple as placing a stone down here and there, even for an informal path like the one James is creating. "You do need to think long and hard about how each stone is placed and how each stone butts up against the other," he explains. "Otherwise, you can end up with a path that's irritating for reasons you can't really explain."

Another great thing about laying an informal path is that every stone doesn't have to be perfectly level. "A few degrees off-kilter won't hurt a thing," says James, "but avoid stones that are so uneven that they're difficult to walk on." Add one stone at a time, mixing the sizes to add interest (figure J). "If I were to use stones of the same size and shape," he explains, "the result would be monotonous."

So as James works, he walks over the path to check the level of the stones and the distance between them, making sure that he doesn't have to abruptly stop as he walks along. "There's nothing worse than walking along a path and being forced to change the rhythm of your step," he adds.