Aside from aesthetics, when choosing a landscaping stone, you also need to consider the durability and application of the stone itself. Natural landscape stone is available in many styles, colors, and cuts. Additionally, natural stone is not limited to river rock, gravel, or limestone anymore – it now includes sandstone, flagstone, marble and even manufactured stone.
When choosing a landscape stone, the fist things to consider should be the application of the stone. Where will it go? How much will you need? What elements will the landscape stone be exposed to? How much traffic will it see? After you have determined your budget and what abuse the stone will need to endure, then it is time to think about color, texture, and design. First, consider the architectural design of the home. Next, consider the color of the home and the landscape design that the stone will need to enhance. Finally, use your personal style to determine the right stone for you.
The Many Uses of Landscaping Stone
Stone lends itself to many practical and architectural uses. Additionally, it lends an elegance and sophistication along with old world or modern feel to any home or garden design. When it comes to landscaping, stone can be used to frame a pond, façade a house front, façade an outdoor fireplace, line walkways and patios, façade stone columns, edge a garden bed, face retaining walls, and create outdoor living spaces or rooms. With a little creativity and thought, many home owners can come up with many more uses for landscaping stone.
If you are planning on designing a new outdoor space, creating curb appeal on a new home, or perhaps you are trying to update and embellish an existing front or back yard or living space, then natural landscaping stone can provide you with long lasting and durable design with a touch of class. There are many types of stones to choose from that are available in a wide variety of colors, textures, shapes, and purposes that can suit any outdoor need.
Choosing Landscape Stones
The most common types of stone applications are usually skirting facades on the fronts of homes or stepping stone walkways. With so many stone applications to choose from, why limit yourself to just stepping stones and facades? A carefully placed boulder in a garden or landscape can add interest, while carefully selected stones can be utilized to create outdoor rooms and living spaces.
1. Retaining walls can be a significant addition to any garden. While they do have their practical purposes such as garden beds or preventing soil erosion, they also add interest to a garden or landscape and appeal to most home fronts. They can also be used around ponds or to elevate patios and outdoor rooms. Popular stones used for this include Chilton, Lannon, Fond du Lac, Waukesha, Kodiak, and Bay De Noc.
2. Fireplaces make any outdoor space warm and inviting. They can be a wonderful backdrop for dinner parties, BBQ’s, or romantic evenings with the family. Thin stone veneer made from natural stone comes in a wide variety of styles and colors and can be applied to the fireplace stone exterior to add that touch of class and elegance.
3. Patios and outdoor rooms can be transformed into warm and inviting living spaces. Carefully selected flagstone varieties such as Chilton, Lannon, Fond du Lac, Waukesha, Kodiak, and Bay De Noc can provide a shoe free zone to simply relax for meal times, play time, or simply to enjoy the paper and your morning coffee.
4. Stone walkways are classic. While gravel may be a selected choice for some home owners, real stone can give the landscape and inviting touch. Easy maintenance and gorgeous colors provide a variety of looks for even the most discriminating tastes.
5. Garden borders can be given a high end upgrade for an inexpensive price. Most stones that are used for walkways and patios can also be used to edge gardens and walkways beautifully.
Selecting Your natural Stones
Landscaping stone is available as flagstone, boulders, marble, natural stone, pebbles, granite, limestone, cobbles, sandstone, outcropping stone, retaining wall stone, steps, treads, coping, thermal finish cut stone, tumbled stone, fieldstone boulders, bluestone, holey boulders, stone signs, and other stepping stones. Stone comes in a wide variety of shapes from natural to precut. Colors can be special ordered to match your home exactly.
Once you have evaluated the particular space, design of your home and garden, and usage of the stone, then it is relatively easy to select the right stones for the job at hand.