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| Cornwall
Landscape Design Ideas |
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Every
house needs a pathway. Pathways are useful and
inviting, and installed with care,they can add
to the appeal and value of a home. Flagstone is
a popular choice for pathways because it looks
natural and creates a smooth walking surface.
Flagstone is not a particular type of stone. It’s
the term for any big, flat, quarried stone used
for pathways, patios, or floors. Some flagstone
is cut into rectangular shapes, and some has rough,
natural edges. Flagstone can be laid dry (on a
bed of stone dust) or wet (in concrete). |
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are drawbacks to laying a pathway in concrete.
It is a more expensive and involved process,
and in colder climates, concrete is prone
to cracking during freeze/thaw cycles.
If a stone moves in a dry-laid pathway,
it is simple to fix. Also, a dry-laid
flagstone pathway looks natural in a mature
landscape; concrete detracts from this
aesthetic. |
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Devon and Cornwall Stone Flooring
Kitchen Worktops - Bathrooms
Granite - Slate - Marble - Tavertine Supplier
Domestic or Commerical Stone Supplies |
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| Tel: 01404 811 200 |
| www.iscastone.co.uk |
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Planning.
Once you’ve determined the best path, draw
the complete stone pattern on graph paper. It
helps when ordering stone and saves time when
laying it. It’s easy to draw the pattern
because modular flagstone is sold in 6-in. increments.
It is best not to lay stones smaller than 12 in.
by 18 in. Stones as large as 30 in. by 36 in.
can be handled by one person. |
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The
pathways path should be direct and
connect the most commonly used entries
to the street, driveway, or parking
area. |
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Before you
break ground The best
path from the front door to the street
or driveway is not the only thing
to consider when planning a pathway,
but it is the first thing. Walking
patterns tend to be similar. If one
person cuts a corner when walking
around a garden, the next person likely
will do the same thing. So when I
plan the course of a pathway, I think
about the path I would take if there
were no pathway in front of me.
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Although
people generally take the shortest path
from one place to the next, a pathways should
feel comfortable. I like to pull the pathway
away from the house so that it doesn’t
feel crowded and people can comfortably
look at the house or gardens while using
the pathway.
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The
distance between the pathway and the house
also can affect the perceived size of the
house (drawing above). For taller houses,
I usually recommend a pathway that is farther
from the house, say 12 ft. Also, the space
between the pathway and the house likely
will be a planting bed, and it is a good
idea to give new plants plenty of room to
mature. I also consider the house’s
style when I decide whether the pathway
should be straight or curved. While putting
a slight radius on corners softens the look
of a straight pathway, a curved pathway
can be tricky because people don’t
naturally walk in a roundabout path from
one place to the next. However, in the right
landscape, a curved path can add character
and give planting beds an interesting line
to play off. A drawing is a great way to
plan a pathway, but it isn’t the best
way to visualize how it will look in the
landscape. I paint the outline of the pathway
on the ground to create a better sense of
what it will look like .
A pattern speeds up the process
Once I’ve decided on the path for
a pathway, I take the measurements on site
and then head inside, where I draw the pathway
on graph paper. As a general rule, a flagstone
pathway should be between 3 ft. and 4 ft.
wide. A pathway less than 3 ft. wide can
feel awkward and clumsy to pathway on. First,
I outline the pathway on graph paper and
draw in individual stones. As tedious as
this process sounds, it speeds up the construction
and allows me to make sure that the pathway’s
pattern is balanced and pleasing to look
at.
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Also,
some rules for laying flagstone are
easier to observe when the pattern
is drawn on paper than when my attention
is focused on laying stone. Laying
out the pathway on graph paper provides
me with a list of stone sizes. And
when it comes time to lay the pathway,
I know how the stones fit together
and can focus my attention on laying
the stone rather than trying to figure
out what size stone should come next. |
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The
function of the base is drainage
Because water
and frost are usually responsible when stones
move, a base that drains water away from the
paths surface is essential. The same base system
described here works great for brick and concrete
pavers. It’s always a challenge to determine
how deep a base needs to be. In a dry area with
good drainage, 6 in. of stone dust may be all
that is necessary. It all depends on the existing
soils. Sand and bank-run gravel provide excellent
drainage and require a less extensive base than
hard-pan soil or clay. In wet locations, I often
dig a 12-in. base and use both trap rock and
stone dust, separated by filter fabric, to promote
drainage. The materials are inexpensive, so
I would rather overbuild a pathway and have
it last than under build and a year later have
to fix the stones that have moved or loosened.
The last thing you want to do is spend hours
or days preparing a base just to have it settle
after the stones have been set. I use a gas
powered tamper to compact the base. If you don’t
own one and can’t borrow one, it is worth
renting a gas-powered tamper to build a pathway
because it does a much better job than a hand
tamper.
Flagstone
is quarried, not perfect. Flagstone
is easy to work with, easy to walk on, and reasonably
priced. But it’s not perfect. Although
the stones are cut to a specific size and thickness,
they’re not all the same. An average pallet
of flagstone will have some oddly shaped and
coloured stone, some stone with cracks, and
some stone with horizontal seams that make them
prone to splitting. Because of these irregularities,
hand-picking
stone at the supply yard is time well spent.
Even
if you’re having it delivered, ask the
supplier if you can pick the stone. Be on the
lookout for warped stones, irregular shapes
and thicknesses, odd colours, cracks, and chips.
Flagstone thickness can range from 1 in. to
4 in. For a pathway, I like to use 11/2-in.
to 2-in.- thick stone. It costs a little more
but doesn’t break as easily as 1-in. stone.
And although it is heavy enough to stay put,
it’s not too heavy to work with. Only
the largest sizes require two people to set.
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Devon and Cornwall Stone Flooring
Kitchen Worktops - Bathrooms
Granite - Slate - Marble - Tavertine Supplier
Domestic or Commerical Stone Supplies |
|
| Tel: 01404 811 200 |
| www.iscastone.co.uk |
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Stakes
and string guide you through pathways installation
When it comes
time to break ground, stakes and string replace
paint. The string represents the finished grade
of the pathway. You sometimes can set the grade
of the pathway by eye, particularly when the pathway
follows the natural grade of the landscape. But
when the pathway or a portion of the pathway needs
to be either perfectly flat or slightly pitched,
a builder’s level or a transit may be necessary
to set the grade. The string continues to come
in handy as the project progresses. During excavation,
you can avoid over digging by measuring down from
the string. The string also reveals where the
existing grade needs to be raised or lowered to
meet the new pathway. When it comes time to lay
the flagstone, the string provides a guide for
the top and outside edges of the stone. I still
need to use a level on each stone, but the string
offers a starting point and a line to keep the
paths edges straight. I use mason’s string
because it’s braided and is less likely
to stretch than wound string. Still, you need
to be sure the string is pulled tight, and reset
every day; otherwise, it will sag, resulting in
a dip in the pathway. |
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Buy
stone dust, not sand Stone dust drains water and
compacts better than sand, two qualities that
prevent the stone from settling or moving. And
don’t skip the filter fabric: It keeps the
stone dust from washing into the trap rock below.
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| INSTALL
THE BASE.
Use the string as a guide and make sure
everything is compacted well to avoid
settling later. Install the base a little
at a time. Spread the trap rock in 3-in.
layers and tamp each layer to be sure
that it is compacted from top to bottom.
The surface of the trap rock will appear
compacted after one pass, but continue
to tamp the entire path at least two more
times. |
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Filter
fabric divides the layers. Filter fabric
keeps the stone dust from infiltrating
the trap rock. Filter fabric is easy to
cut with a knife, but have some rocks
or hand tools around on a windy day to
hold it down until you put in the first
layer of stone dust.
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Pick
the flagstone yourself Flagstone varies
in thickness and quality, and time spent
in the stone yard selecting flagstones
will be more than made up with time you
save laying them. Look for flat, square-cornered
stones with no cracks. Avoid stones thinner
than 1 in.
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Devon and Cornwall Stone Flooring
Kitchen Worktops - Bathrooms
Granite - Slate - Marble - Tavertine Supplier
Domestic or Commerical Stone Supplies |
|
| Tel: 01404 811 200 |
| www.iscastone.co.uk |
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Laying
stone is the fun part.
When you lay
the stone, it is important that it is set at the
correct grade, is level, and is even with other
stones. It is also important that the entire bottom
of the stone is touching the base to prevent rocking
and cracking. Begin at the house, and work your
way toward the driveway. If the path meets steps
anywhere along the path, measure the risers and
make the step onto the path the same height. Lay
stones across the path so that you never have
to make the stone you are working on meet more
than two other stones’edges. Even when I
have strings on both sides of the path and the
tops of the stones appear to be even, I use a
level to double-check everything. If the path
meets the foundation, I pitch the path slightly
away from the house to shed water. For the most
part, laying flagstone is trial and error. You
have to set down the stone first to get an idea
of what needs to be done to make it sit flat.
Sometimes you need to add stone dust, sometimes
you need to remove it, and sometimes you need
to do a little bit of both. But always tamp any
dust that you add or loosen during this laying
process. Once I have gotten the stone level, I
lean or step on the corners and around the edges
to make sure that it doesn’t rock. Then
I make my way around the edges of the stone with
a trowel and chisel, working loose dust underneath
the stone and packing in the dust . If the tool
slides easily under the stone, I know the stone
has a pocket underneath it where it is not sitting
on the base.
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Fill the
joints with a trowel, not a broom.
The last step in
laying a pathway is to fill the seams with stone
dust. Most people simply sweep dust into the seams.
I think this is a mistake. Stone dust in the seams
keeps the flagstone from shifting, so I work dust
into the voids with a trowel. It’s important
to work dust into the voids and not just pack
it down. Don’t begin this process until
the entire pathway is laid in case you want to
move stones to straighten seams. |
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| Cornwall
Landscape Design Ideas and Advice |
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