A Gallery of Stones

Look around your garden. Is it flat? Does it need a little something? Well, stones are an inexpensive, effective, beautiful way to add life to any garden. With their graceful lines, soft hues and quiet presence, stones give structure and add character in an understated way. Take a look at what we mean...

The placement of stones in your garden is the single most important thing to consider when you buy them, says Carol Williams, an expert in using stone in the garden. Where and how you position a stone makes a difference of whether it looks like it's been there a million years or whether you've used what she calls the "dump-and-run" method.

Sometimes a well-placed stone can become a main focal point of the garden and stabilize everything around it.

Williams finds that people gravitate toward their own kind of stone. If you're not sure what your kind is, go out and study a natural setting that appeals to you. If you like the Arizona desert, you'll want soft, natural sandstone color. If you like high mountain country, then you'll probably be drawn to quartzite, sharp edges, and uplifting shapes.

In addition to placement, another consideration when adding stone to your garden is how well it works with your planting scheme. For instance, blue fescue would blend well against a large mossy stone. The soft curves of the "wave" (above left) and "seal" stones (above center) would work well in a meditative type garden.

Stone can have practical uses too. The long flat edges of these stones (above right) create an easy attractive wall.

 
These stone "blocks" (above left) would make a perfect natural edging around a swimming pool or could serve as stair treads for terracing down the side of a slope.

When it rains, says Williams, you get a whole different view of what can happen in a rock garden. She likes to water her stones just to watch the color change.

Ask Williams what stones mean to her and she'll tell you: "Stone brings strength, energy, stability...all the things that the human element sometimes misses out on. Stone brings that into my life."