What is Hardscape Stone and How Can It Enhance Your Garden Landscaping?

One option for garden landscaping is limestone. It is a sedimentary rock, or a stone that is made up of grains of rock, fossils and eroded plants, together with mud and sand that compress and clump together. Limestone is a solid sedimentary rock that is perfect for the backyard patio. This building material is composed of eroded grains of rocks, fossils and even plants.

Over thousands of years, these materials were mixed with mud and sand and compacted to create solid sheets of limestone. Homeowners love this rock because it's durable and can withstand the elements. In addition, its red and tan tones blend perfectly with the North Carolina landscape. You can think of kitchen countertops when you think of granite, and this durable stone is also ideal for your outdoor kitchen counter. Granite is an igneous rock, which means that it comes from the depths of the Earth's crust.

As magma tries to escape from the center of our planet, it reaches colder temperatures that force it to harden and turn into solid rock. Granite comes in various colors and designs, depending on the quarry it comes from. The term hardscape refers to all non-living elements of landscaping, such as a brick patio, stone wall, or wooden tree. It is one of the two main subcategories of landscaping, the other being softscape.

Softscape includes all the living and organic elements of a garden or lawn, such as trees, flowers and grass. Travertine, which generally has more pitting and has a more varied color, is often referred to as giving an “old world, rustic, Mediterranean or old” look. Marble, which generally has fewer pitting and a more consistent surface, is often described as giving a more elegant or contemporary look. Gravel is one of the most popular gardening stones for use in outdoor property designs. Gravel is made up of small, round pebbles that are pleasant to the eye and to the foot.

They are also relatively cheap. Natural stone has been used for eons and for good reason. It's wonderfully attractive, blends seamlessly into the landscape, looks natural, and comes in a wide variety of options, including limestone, granite, marble, sandstone and slate. If you choose a natural stone for your region, it will adapt well to the climate, ensuring a long lifespan and excellent durability. Its only drawback is the high cost.

However, while the initial outlay will be greater than for other materials, maintenance requirements and ongoing costs are minimal. If the versatility and aesthetic appeal of natural stone have conquered you, you have one of two options to choose from: solid stone and loose stone. Loose stone tends to be used primarily for roads and driveways, but its potential extends much further, making it an excellent choice for garden borders or even patios. Solid stone is equally versatile and is available in a wide selection of slabs of different sizes and colors that can be grouped together to create a dynamic topic of conversation. Hardscape features can be large or small, decorative or functional and, when used wisely, can balance areas of the soft landscape to create a more pleasing aesthetic. The combination of landscaping and landscaping will give your property a pleasant mix of colors and textures.

As Hunker points out, synthetic wood or composite hardwood material offers the same aesthetic appeal as real wood but doesn't tend to chip, fade or warp over time. StoneHardscapes imports only the best hand-selected natural stone including pavers, joints tiles and wall sheets ideal for both residential and commercial applications. If you have a car trip chances are good that you already have some asphalt gardens around your property. It is also labor intensive both at the point of installation and throughout the life of the hardscape feature. Hard landscaping is a fundamental part of landscape design as it provides definition and a sense of organization to natural areas and features. However this type of gardening stone is usually priced by size and weight meaning your project could be quite expensive but it would be worth it.

The initial outlay is higher but if you're looking for a durable outdoor material that requires minimal maintenance it's a good option. If you are looking for a natural affordable and incredibly versatile material for hard landscapes decomposed granite is a great choice. Hard landscaping can include almost any type of decorative or practical structure in a landscape from entrances to fences and benches. Harsh landscape elements can also define the use of a space such as a driveway or they can lead visitors through different areas of gentle landscape such as a gravel path that winds through a grassy area and reaches a secluded garden. These hard gardening stones are easy to maintain so you can spend more time entertaining yourself in your backyard than working in it. Some garden projects are too physically demanding to complete with labor alone and others require heavy equipment.

StoneHardscapes offers a variety of entryway products including 2 ¼ inch granite product.