Monday, December 28, 2009

KNOW WHO TO ASK

Ask a landscape contractor specializing in brick/stone/concrete/mortar for ideas about a path or terrace? It's fairly certain you'll end up with ideas like this, below. Instead of something like this, below.
Gravel ranges $20-$48/ton & doesn't require skilled labor.
.
At a girlfriend's for dinner I broke a personal rule, "No Landscape Designing, Unless Asked. " She told me the story of several contractor bids to repair her old, broken concrete patio. Each bid into the thousands of dollars. I asked her, "What do you think of gravel?"
.
Yes, dahlings, less than $300 later she had a gravel terrace. She asked me, "Why didn't any of the contractors tell me about gravel?" She loves the terrace & so do I. We've had many dinners, brunches & glasses of wine on her gravel terrace.
.
Garden & Be Well, XO Tara
.
Top pic from Smithsonian Horticulture Archive, Bottom pic from the movie, It's Complicated. No time to poke around for my girlfriend's gravel terrace at the moment. Another post!

6 comments:

Southern Aspirations said...

HAHA. Totally agree. Not to mention the better drainage with gravel and avoiding big pools of water which has been problematic of late.

Plus, if you *had* to have a brick patio later, wouldn't the gravel act as a good base? Maybe?

Ewa said...

great example - so true, so true.

Happy New Year Tara!

Terry said...

I'm an all gravel all the time fan.

Landscape Designer said...

Great illustration of why Designers pay for themselves!!!!!!

Sandra Jonas

Terry said...

I just visited a tiny "done" front yard on "High Point" in Morningside" beautiful gravel. they probably only needed a few wheelbarrow loads.

Nikki said...

What do you suggest to keep the weeds out of the gravel? Do you put weed block down first (I hate weed block), or just pull them out as they pop up?