Walkway design

People are going to walk on your lawn. It's something you might as well accept. Whether it's the mailman or your children there's no escaping the fact that your pretty lawn is going to be trampled from time to time. Sometimes a path across the lawn is by far the most convenient way to reach the garage or storage shed where your lawnmower, bicycles, or basketball goal is located. You'll be happy to learn that this presents a rather unique opportunity for you. Implementing a walkway along this path is the perfect solution. Not only does it decrease the amount of wear and tear, it also provides an entirely new aesthetic dimension to the decor of your lawn.

Walkway Options

You have many different options when it comes to constructing your walkway, both simple and complicated. It all depends on how much time, money, and effort you are ready to shell out. Below are just a few of the options you have.

• A rather simple approach is to purchase concrete slabs, approximately 18 inches in diameter, from your local garden store. Simply position the slabs directly on the ground about two feet apart from one another along the pathway.

• For a variation on this method, consider digging out an area in the ground for each stepping stone. Leave approximately one-half inch of the stone above ground. This will allow you to easily mow over the walkway as well as trim the weeds that will inevitably sprout up in the area.

• Another thing you might consider instead of stepping stones is constructing your walkway entirely of pebbles or gravel. This will eliminate the need for mowing around the walkway area at all. You may also choose to use pebbles or gravel in addition to your stone slabs. Either way, you should definitely consider first putting down a layer of landscaping fabric before you incorporate the gravel or pebbles. This will aid in both drainage and weed prevention.

• A walkway consisting entirely of mulch, are a combination of mulch and stepping stones, is another solution to this problem. Just remember that mulch can be rather messy, especially on rainy days. However, it remains a good, inexpensive option for your walkway.

• If you do decide on using mulch as your walkway, there are a number of ways to accent your path. For instance, wood or plastic edge pieces will give your walkway a more formal look. These inexpensive accents can be purchased at your local garden store and easily installed along the edge of your walkway with the use of a mallet or hammer.

• If your walkway is located on a slight slope, you might consider using pine needle mulch, since the needles cling together much better and are more likely to stay in place during a heavy storm.

• Bark nuggets are another great alternative for you walkway. Today bark nuggets come in various stains such as red, black, and brown and are resistance to fading due to exposure to sunlight.

• Planting ground cover along your walkway is another great way to make your walkway look its very best. Carpet Bugle is very common plant used for ground cover along walkways. It spreads horizontally above stolons and produces crowns. It has foliage that reaches 4 to 6 inches in height as well as stems that grow up to 8 to 10 inches that, in the springtime, produce beautiful, purple-blue flowers.

• Trailing Periwinkle is another great plant to use as ground cover along your walkway. It is a fast-growing evergreen that produces dark green foliage and blue flowers in the spring.