Perfect Pathways to a Beautiful Landscape

Perfect Pathways

A trip through a beautiful landscape can be a series of stepping stones, a wild path through vegetation, crushed granite or some happy medium. No matter the way from Point A to Point B, perfect pathways through your landscape make the trip that much more enjoyable.

Perfect pathways can be straight as an arrow, or wind their way through colors and textures of plant material and your choice of material on which to take those leisurely steps. Ideally, the perfect pathway should be pervious – allowing water to percolate through – so that the ground can receive that precious rainfall when it graces the area.

However, homeowners with mobility issues may need a more stable surface on which to meander through their landscapes, and impervious options like sidewalks, mortared flagstones, mortared bricks or very firmly-packed decomposed granite can certainly provide that.

With sidewalks and the notion of anchoring flagstones, pavers or bricks in place, remember that pervious concrete is now available and it allows water to percolate straight through and down into the ground.

Possibilities indeed…

posted by: Nathan Riggs

  • Push open the entrance gate at this home and a pathway of Leuders Limestone slabs interspersed with river rock spaces welcomes you inside. Beds of Berkeley Sedge (Carex divulsa) provide soft green edges.
  • Not all brick roads have to be yellow. They can wind through the landscape, providing a smooth, yet edgy means to admire the plants and grasses that have received plenty of TLC along the way.
  • Sometimes a patchwork of stones and mulch provide just the ticket to paradise. Manicured yaupons and boxwoods serve as geometric opposites to the random beauty of the colorful sage in the foreground.
  • Sometimes a tunnel into the green is just what a person needs to relax and enjoy the outdoors. The sound of footsteps on wooden pathways combined with greenery overhead is music to the senses while providing a slightly elevated view of the surroundings.
  • Sometimes a person needs a stable pathway on which to venture through the landscape. Flagstones anchored with mortar or cement provide the steady footing necessary to bring focus to the landscape and not the steps ahead. Pervious cement is available for anchoring that allows water to pass through instead of puddle on the walkway.
  • Flagstone and river rock are combined to provide a colorful and functional conveyance through the landscape. The landscape doesn't have to be the ONLY thing providing color...
  • Sometimes those perfect pathways end in a perfect and peaceful resting place. The combination of pavers, large pebbles and colored granite serve to provide a contrast to the color of the surrounding landscape elements. A great place to sit, admire and think.
  • The sight of small plants growing between the flagstones along the pathway conjure up old-world gardens with topiaries and perfectly manicured landscaping. Here, the combination of manicured shrubs, traditional grass and xeric plants brings a new-world element and welcomes all.
  • The beautifully-colored stones, combined with blooms from trailing lantana, cuphea and sage, provide an eye-catching distraction along this garden path. This is another great example of a pathway suitable for those with stability concerns.
  • Sagos, rosemary, mallows and other blooming perennials line this mulched path edged with wooden logs, providing a rustic feel while admiring the drought-tolerant color along the way.
  • Pathways don't always have to be made of conventional materials. Here, shards of decorative tile and pottery are scattered among fractured flagstones, creating an attention-getting texture that focuses visual attention on the pathway.
  • Sometimes the best pathway doesn't require a lot of work. This pathway of leaves and mulch edged with larger river rocks provides the same effect as a much more elaborate walkway. You still get to admire the shady beauty of the landscape from start to finish.
  • Although pathways always take you on a trip, they can also be used as a functional means to convey water runoff in natural drainages. This pathway of pavers and river rock serves as a riverbed to channel excess rainwater as well as a means to enjoy the landscape.
  • This unique pathway through a shady glen elevates slightly above the ground and yet provides a gentle cascade of steps along the way. Boardwalks can be variable and as wide or narrow as the desires of the designer.
  • Stepping stones among the vegetation provide an alternate route through cool, shady landscape elements.

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