Building a Rock Garden in 9 Steps
We show how you can build a beautiful rock garden here…
A rock garden is by no means a piece of land on which barren stones create a desolate landscape, rather a garden with natural stones and colourful plants radiates alpine flair! What is important is revealed here.
Building a rock garden: The preparations
First of all it is important to plan the area well. Ideally, your future rockery should be on a slope facing south, alternatively you can create a slope by filling up the garden so that rainwater runs off well and does not build up waterlogging – because the rock garden plants do not like that at all.
Make a sketch to scale and then start planning. You should still think about these aspects:
- Would you like to decorate part of the garden with stones, create a mini rock garden in a corner or a bucket, or convert the entire garden?
- Plan sidewalks on your sketch if you want to create a large part or the entire garden as a rock garden.
- A big erratic block as an eye catcher? How much space does one or more take up?
- How much space should plants occupy?
- Which plants do you like and are suitable for a rock garden?
- Note the requirements of the respective plants: do they like it shady, sunny or semi-shady? Are they sheltered from the wind? How big will they be in the end?
- Pay attention to the different sizes when choosing the rocks, so you create natural contrasts in the garden.
Creating Stone Garden: Material
You need that to start a rock garden:
- Drainage (e.g. gravel or building rubble)
- Weed fleece
- Rocks of different sizes
- Plants
- Substrate
- Garden tools
- Possibly vole wire
Building a rock garden: Instructions
- Prepare the ground: Remove the top soil by about 30 cm.
- Make sure that the exposed soil is free of roots! Optionally you can now lay the vole wire.
- Now spread the drainage as the next layer of about 20 cm on the surface. This is extremely important, as the plants cannot tolerate waterlogging! In this way you ensure that rainwater can drain away easily.
- Now lay the fleece over the drainage. Alternatively, you can also lay the turf upside down, i.e. with the ground facing upwards and the green (turf) pointing downwards.
- In the next step, spread the substrate, preferably sparse plant soil, over the surface.
- Now it’s time for the design! Ideally, you have already thought about what goes where during preparation and planning. Place the large stones first, then the smaller ones, leaving spots for your plants.
- If you lay out your garden on a slope, place stones as stairs – this way you avoid the ground slipping off too quickly when you walk on it.
- Fill in the gaps with gravel or small stones. Ideally, you should now give your garden a little time to sink.
- Last but not least, plant your flowers!
20 Best Plants for a Rock Garden
Not every plant found in a flowerbed is suitable for planting in a rock garden. But those that come from mountain regions are naturally created for this. They do not require many nutrients, are robust and easy to care for, making them ideal for this type of garden. Mediterranean herbs, grasses and succulents blend in perfectly. Here you will find an overview of suitable greenery:
- Aloe vera
- Edelweiss
- Aster (genus)
- Azorella trifurcata
- Calluna vulgaris
- Aubrieta
- Salvia yangii
- Festuca glauca
- Gentiana
- Houseleek
- Japanese azalea
- Lamp cleaner grass (Pennisetum alopecuroides)
- Lavender
- Rosemary
- Koeleria glauca
- Bearded iris
- Carex
- Phlox caespitosa
- Thyme
- Dwarf pine (Pinus pumila)
By the way: Here are some tips for succulent care.
Rocks for the garden
The following stones are suitable for the rock garden:
- Gravel (different colors)
- Porphyry (purple)
- Sandstone (cream to red)
- Limestone (beige/cream)
- Marble (white to grey)
- Granite (white to grey)
- Quartzite (grey)
- Gneiss (grey to brown)
- Slate (anthracite)
- Basalt (black)
Ideas for a beautiful rock garden
In your garden you don’t have to do without other decorative or practical elements, how about …
- … a (stone) bank
- … clay figures
- … a fountain or
- … solar lights?
You still can’t imagine how your own rock garden should look like? We have a few ideas and examples for you!