Landscaping concepts have evolved a lot in recent years beyond simple sod grass. While sophisticated modern materials have made it possible to do some truly innovative things, there has also been a strong trend toward the organic, and working with what nature gives us. The best part about it is that a lot of these natural concepts are relatively inexpensive. Many of them you can do yourself, or at least put in a fair amount of the overall labor to reduce the costs of bringing in a professional landscaper to do more than just mow your lawn.
One of the more creative canvases for landscaping inspiration comes from the “Rock Garden” concept. It’s particularly handy if recent road construction in your area has turned up some stray boulders that can be managed by hand or light-duty machine. Yet, even if you don’t have rocks readily at hand, you still might be able to get them without putting a serious dent in your checking account.
Where Can I Get Rocks For A Rock Garden For Free?
If you’re willing to be a little resourceful, and you’re willing to put in a little elbow grease, you might just be able to get most of the materials for a rock garden for free.
Farm Field Rock Piles
Sometimes all it takes is a little bit of a lazy drive through the country to find rather interesting rocks. Farmers have been battling boulders for years. Indeed, rocks of just about any size can mess with farm machinery and make it hard to grow crops.
A lot of times farmers will indiscriminately deposit rocks at the edge of their field or leave a rock pile in a corner near the road. You’re more likely to find the best rock piles near older farm fields that have had decades to accumulate. If possible, you want to ask the farmer if you can take them. 90% of the time, they’ll be happy to let you take them off their hands.
Road Construction Sites
Ideally, you want to look for road construction projects where new water lines are being put in. Since these large pipes need to be buried six or more feet down, they tend to unearth rocks that no man has ever laid eyes on. Medium to large rocks are often placed at the edge of the roadbed and left to be removed in the later stages of the project. Here again, you want to talk to the foreman or job supervisor in advance. They have safety regulations that they have to follow, but if you ask nicely, they might let you take a look at some of their discarded tailings after the workday is done.
Rivers & Rocky Beaches
Here again, you want to make sure you have permission before you start grabbing up rocks at random. You also need to take a little extra time to clean them. Chances are good waterfowl droppings, dead fish, and bugs have been rubbing up on the surface of them for years. So, give them a thorough wash and scrub down with soapy water when you get home.
Hauling Natural Rock
If you are going to source your own natural rock, you also need to be mindful of your vehicle’s payload capacity. Rocks are heavy, and even a large number of small rocks can even push the limits of a full-size pickup truck’s suspension system. Especially if you will be moving them from Point A to Point B at highway speeds.
Most vehicles have the payload and towing capacity statistics stamped or printed in the driver’s side door well. If you are concerned that you might be exceeding your vehicle’s towing capacity with the volume of rock you are thinking about hauling yourself, then you might want to consider renting a trailer. This will give you more carrying capacity, as well as giving you the ability to better distribute the weight.
Choosing The Size & Location For Your New Rock Garden
They say that when Michelangelo was working on a sculpture that he would first sit and look at it for days, if not weeks before he chiseled the tiniest piece off of it. While you maybe don’t need to go into this deep of a level of contemplation, you should still spend a serious amount of time thinking about the features you want. Then pull out a tape measure and some graph paper to start seeing if you can lay everything out in the space you have available.
Also, take the time to think about the lighting. Will the site receive good natural light in the morning or the afternoon? This simple thing can influence where you place certain features. So, it wouldn’t be out of place to take a day or two to map the shadows and how they move throughout the day. This is especially important if you are building your rock garden around any existing trees, fences of other natural features that can block the light.
Popular Rock Garden Concepts
The organic nature of rock gardens and the available geology in your area can strongly influence the concepts you consider. Though there are some exotic options available, especially if you are going through a landscaping contractor who has access to interesting materials including artificial rocks. The following are just a few examples of some of the more popular rock gardens for nearly any size yard.
A Zen Rock Garden
This is arguably one of the first rock gardens to roar to popularity. Most tend to be relatively small and deceptively minimalist. Some Zen rock gardens are small enough to live indoors in a sunroom or are a tabletop display. Larger ones tend to be outside either in an arid environment or under some type of roofed structure like a covered pergola.
A lot of Zen rock gardens feature sand or fine gravel that can be raked, with enough substance to them to show the lines of the traditional bamboo rake. A small collection of polished stones can be moved through the Zen rock garden as needed to let you alter the concept. A few of these rock gardens might also include a bonsai tree or a stunted juniper.
Equilibrium Stones Or Cairns
Originally a tribal concept or a grave concept, the idea of equilibrium stones placed in balance or stacked stones, known as cairns have become increasingly popular rock garden concepts. It’s sort of like you are creating a jigsaw puzzle that nature never intended.
Depending on the size of the stones you are using and just how good you are at stacking or positioning them, you might need to consider bringing in a professional landscape designer. If you get it wrong, the stones could tumble that day or a month down the line which might be okay. Taking time out of a frustrating day to play with new rock configurations might be fun.
A Rock Garden Terrace
Creating terraces with natural rock as the framing and facia is a great way to enhance a garden concept or flower bed. Though if you are going to grow plants in the terrace, make sure that there is more than enough soil in the planting beds.
You’ll also want to think about drainage. Laying down landscaping fabric before filling soil into the planting beds will go a long way toward preventing long-term soil erosion issues throughout the terrace system.
Rock Garden With A Water Feature
Rock gardens and water go together hand in hand. You can use the rock garden to frame a water feature or to integrate the water feature into a terrace. One of the more popular options is to place a fountain at the highest point of a rock garden. Then let the water flow down into artificial streams to meat in a collection basin.
The collection basin could also be a great place to keep Koi or other fish that can survive in a modest amount of water. A discrete return line can then bring water from the collection basin back to the fountain. When done right this can even help aerate the water to help keep fish healthy and active.
The Monolith
A single standing stone surrounded by other contrasting smaller stones can create a visually striking landscaping feature. This is more likely in the yards of people who have had recent work done on their municipal water lines or nearby road construction that turned up a hard to move boulder or simply turn up a visually striking stone.
You can then use smaller stones, contrasting rock, and natural vegetation around that single rock. You might be amazed by how a little creativity can transform what might have been an inconvenient stone into a striking landscaping feature that sparks a conversation when you have guests over.
The Stone Garden Lined Walkway
Lining the main walkway to your house on one or both sides with a stone garden is a great way to boost your home’s curb appeal. This can be as simple as a collection of larger, visually striking rocks surrounded by gravels and small natural stones. Container-grown plants can be tastefully placed along the way to add to the organic feel. You can then curve the perimeter of the rock garden or give the boundary sharp lines to maximize the visual flow.
A Stone Garden With A Central Fire Feature
At first glance, a fire feature or a fire pit, and a rock garden should work and play well together. Some of these firepits are wood-burning, though if you have access to a gas line, there are some very visually attractive propane and even natural gas fire elements that are well worth considering.
Just bear in mind that some natural rocks are porous. If they absorb rainwater and are then exposed to a hot fire they can crack, or even shatter dangerously. So, if you are going to do-it-yourself, you might want to use a commercially produced metal fire ring, firepit, or lining it with rated fire brick.
