It's difficult to mow the grass properly. Wheels bang into the rock. In the shallow places, the knifes almost cut into the rock.
I've dug out a distance from the rock now, this will allow for easier grass cutting as seen in the pictures. I need to fill the gap somehow.
I was thinking of bark mulch, but on the shallow rocky parts, the bark will get kicked of from kids running on it.
Pavers could also work, but again the shallow parts won't allow the edges of the pacers to stay level with either the sloped rock or the grass.
Could I fill this with concrete maybe? This sounds like a good idea, but I'm a bit hesitant to commit to it. Any ideas would be greatful.
by Strawtown
30 Comments
Crushed stone, compact it and plant something like Stone Crop
I’d just get a cordless string trimmer. Seems easier than fighting the grass trying to fill that in.
How much space are you dealing with? If it was me I’d make it bigger, turn it into a flower bed, and plant things that will overlap and soften the rock face. That’s a very cool feature and is a look that many people spend lots of money trying to attain.
I would use barkdusk. I dislike little gravel and it reflects heat in the summer…which you CAN feel bounce and hit you in the face.
I like the natural edge look and would leave it. Much easier to use a string trimmer and keep it tidy.
I personally like the grass to go right up to the rock edge… I’d fill it in with strips of matching sod, or try to build it up and seed it.
A sedge border would look great, require very little maintenance, and handle getting hit with the mower on occasion.
Man I would kill to have a feature like that. I would build flower beds all around it.
I would love to add some rockery plants. Or creeping herbs. Campanula. Creeping Thyme. Camomile – the latter 2 can be mowed too.
Keep it like that and use line trimmer to keep it clean and edged or cut it wider and fill with types of sedum. I don’t think mulch or gravel would look right.
Try searching for narrow bed gardens?
I don’t know which region you live in but this article has great suggestions.
Go with what you’d like to look at, for sure.
[https://www.bhg.com/gardening/design/styles/best-plants-for-rock-gardens/](https://www.bhg.com/gardening/design/styles/best-plants-for-rock-gardens/)
Snake pit
Pouring concrete is likely to look terrible to begin with, and also because the earth is going to recede from it. Whatever you pick need to be supple, like mulch or smaller rocks to “move” with the area, and yes it’ll require maintenance but so will concrete.
That is a edge, a curbed edge. People would die for those edging. Enjoy it!
Concrete would be a pain in the ass and look absolutely awful. Make it a garden bed or just fill it with river rock, crushed stone, or some other similar substance.
Just some stone. Or pea gravel?
I know others have mentioned some flower beds.
I keep my flower beds with a natural edge and believe me Id love this feature in my yard.
But given that I have 10 flower beds. And some of them lengthy it can be a bit much to add flowers all around. Maintain and so forth.
Some simple gravel with a weed barrier would help keep more maintenance free.
Grow grass flush against the rock and use a weedeater to maintain the grass next to the rock, not a mower.
You’re using the wrong tool!
*knives, but they’re called *blades*
Wildflowers
Dig a moat
More grass
I would make it wider and add some plants /flowers to compliment the rock formation
Wood chip of stone chippings, both with membrane or PVC underneath
If you want to keep the grass look but don’t want to mow so close to the rock you could plant Pennsylvania Sedge on the boarder and just mow up to the sedge.
Beautiful rock btw. I would play on that all day as a kid
I’d go with rock or grass
That was a lot of work. Why didn’t you just put some native plant beds in front of the rock?
Order 1,000 of these to fill the gap, at Cupertino we call this the iGap. Anytime there’s work being done on the sidewalks around here we fill the holes with Apple accessories.
-Tim
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ChatGPT can be very helpful with the input from everyone in this thread
I don’t know what’s wrong with me but I first read that title as “Ideas for filling the space between *ock and ass”.
Make it a little bigger, with a smooth edge the mower can follow.
Then put mulch in the gap.