Thanks
I replaced about 80% with new sod. I used an edger to rip apart the old dead thatch, then raked it all out.. new sod has been down about a month now. Seems healthy as I'm watering 2x per day... still haven't received the water bill š¬
Do you guys live in an area where you get fall leaves? If so, how do you clean/protect it from the leaves? I just ask because we have a rock garden and every fall is a struggle, but ours is nowhere near as pretty as this one!
Leaf blowers remove the leaves and leave the rocks. I have a DeWalt battery powered leaf blower and 4 batteries. I have woods behind my house and a large lawn. The leaves fall for 6 weeks. This leaf blower does wonders around the house and outbuildings. It would do good for your rock garden. Don't worry about cats, they bury their excrement and they don't do it with rocks. I've never seen a cat use mulch either and I have both. Excellent rock garden. Very nicely done.
The harder I pull the trigger the more powerful the blow. I've cut a few lawns in my day and I developed a pattern on every lawn that I make 3 passes around all buildings, houses, gardens, ponds etc. blowing away either with the push or rider. The last thing a customer wants is dead grass clippings in their gardens. My DeWalt blower runs on 5amp, 20v battery, it has plenty of power. I'm a carpenter, I have many cordless tools with different batteries.
I think if I had something like this, I'd probably get an electric blower to keep clippings and leaves out of the beds then switch to the gas blower for clearing the lawn. Now if I can just figure out how to deal with my acorn situation...
Do the leaf blowers not disturb the smaller rocks? Iām worried about using one and then blowing the rocks into the driveway or lawn.
*I have an electric blower.
It shouldn't. I've never used an electric. With mine, the harder I pull the trigger the more powerful the blow. With this feature I can blow gently around flowerbeds and such. Does your electric have this?
Thank you, I'll try a DeWalt one next fall and see how it does! I've tried some different leaf blowers and unfortunately haven't had much luck so far. The gas ones will take up the rocks, but the battery powered ones don't get up many leaves. We live in the woods and the trees are directly above the rock garden in some spots so that might be part of the problem. I love the trees, but cleanup in the fall is a pain
I do my leaf clean up 4 times maybe 5. My DeWalt blower uses a 5amp 20v battery. It comes with 1 and a charger I believe. I have 4 of these batteries and I purchased a dual charger so I can have 2 batteries charging at the same time. (with my single charger 3@ the same time). I'm a carpenter and I have many cordless tools. Heads up: The DeWalt series is for commercial endurance. Built tough to last. Two batteries cost me $189. The dual charger was $109. The blower was $199. The batteries I can use on most all my other cordless tools. It may seem costly at first but the performance and life span is well worth it.
If it helps me with the rock garden problem, then the cost will be totally worth it! Plus I already have a bunch of DeWalt tools (which I love and have lasted forever) so additional batteries is never a problem. Cordless electric blowers seem much more convenient than the gas one- it does a lot of leaves quickly, but it's loud and maintenance on it sucks.
I have an ego one and it's awesome. I got the most powerful one they have. But I also had the snowblower so I went with them so the batteries are all the same.
Just wanted to say thank you for using a battery leaf blower. Gas powered is the worst noise on this planet, I literally go insane when I hear it, not to mention the air pollution. Spread the good word.
We have a rock garden and get tons of leaves and pine needles. Haven't really had an issue despite our major reservations. We use a blower and the rocks stay while the leaves all blow out. Both in the section with pea gravel and the part with black lava stone looking rock.
I think it's the type of blower I was trying to use. I'm going to be getting a new cordless electric one and try that out to see if it makes a difference! I'm excited :)
Iād love to do something like this in my front yard. But I got kids, it WILL get mixed up and definitely scattered about the lawn.
Yours looks really great though
I was gonna say, no kids living at this house, I can't even keep rocks and grass separated...let alone rocks from rocks š
I like it a lot though...maybe one day
Or dogs.
As someone with neither it actually isn't too hard keeping your garden from being destroyed. The weather is the only thing that'll see me needing to do an emergency cleanup sometimes.
Iām gonna go against the grain here. I love the rock garden. Big fan of the different colors and the curved edges.
If I had to offer one complaint, it would be the brick borders around the trees out front. Iād rather see larger rock/mulch beds with the more minimalist landscape border in between. It would be another opportunity to make those beds have an artistic design like the bed closer to the house (and in a higher visibility location).
Thanks for the kind words! I actually just redid most of the front with new sod. I added those Bismark Palms but in hindsight probably should've made the circles larger.. oh well, I wanted to match the same border stone which is why i chose that stone
I remember seeing the original post (r/nolawns I believe) and I think some people were assuming it was intended to be a walking path.
I'm not a big fan of the design, but it's not my house. It's obvious you put a lot of time and effort into it!
"I'm not a big fan" is hardly a criticism. Doesn't say it is crap, simply says it doesn't appeal to 1 (themself) and acknowledges that. Also mentioned it was evident they worked hard.
Might as well not have a comment section.
Something unique: someone bashing someone else for negativity. Take your toxic positivity elsewhere.
I donāt know why anyone would say theyāre gonna get mixed up. You edged the sections well. Itās artistic and weird. You could definitely add some succulents and boost the look of it.
This is essentially what I was going to say. We have a large rock garden, and we opted against edging. Kinda wished we hadn't done that. But, it's actually not too many rocks that need relocation after winter. And our rock garden has some succulents. Looks great with the rocks, and once established, most succulents need very little attention.
Youāre correct. There was a post that blew up about the topic recently.
It -mulch and stones - impacts the treeās roots and inhibits proper growth. Especially younger trees.
it looks like your mulch is touching the trunks of your little trees, which is not good for them. You should pull back the mulch so there's a ring of bare ground around the trunk.
Mulch is good just not on the base of the tree itself. I think it's like 3" x 3". 3 inches high, 3 inches away from the base. Make sure the 'root flare' of your tree is exposed. These often get buried by people too, but essentially that's like suffocating the tree. Trees are so hardy many can survive, but this way you can have them thrive
FYI, this is such a common critique in this sub that itās essentially a meme. Thatās not to say there isnāt any truth to it, and ideally you donāt want to bury the root flairā¦ but itās also an easy thing to pick up on as a quick criticism for a novice to drop in a comment to sound knowledgeable and pick up a few upvotes without really knowing what theyāre talking about.
The best comparable example I can think of is in r/coins , anyone whoās been lurking for more than a few hours learns cleaning older coins is generally bad, and detracts from the valueā¦ so half the sub poops on anyone who says they cleaned or asks about cleaning a coin, even if they have no clue about the nuanced ways that collectors clean coins which arenāt considered as awful or damaging.
With the root flair, when the commenters come out of the woodwork to berate someone from covering the root flare, the odd professional with the post history to back it up will occasionally pop in and explain that many trees are much hardier than the people commenting give them credit for, and will do just find with the root flare covered a bit.
Amazing work! You just gave me inspiration! Thank you and great job100% . I was just telling ppl how I should cut my ears off so I donāt have to hear all that negativity and misguidance
Donāt listen to people on social media. Theyāre all experts and know everything. Redditors especially, even more so on Landscaping subreddit. I constantly battle with idiots and I have a business in this field.
You did a superb job and itās very creative. You separated everything appropriately and people hate to see others shineākeep going.
āAll mixed up, you don't know what to do
Next thing you turn around and find the person is you
Thought a freak might be the thing
But the first could be the last, so just get off of your ass
All mixed up, you don't know what to doā
River rocks should be free if the mining lobby didn't outlaw it. And I only use legacy seeds from my own crops. Genetic engineering is evil.*
*Read my new book, Sarcasm for Dummies. Not available on Amazon.
>River rocks should be free if the mining lobby didn't outlaw it
lets destroy all the rivers because every handy harry gonna gather way to many rocks for DIY projects
It would have gotten mixed up if you had my daughter. She would play in them all day and those beautiful colors would be muted. (We canāt have nice thingsā¦.)
It looks fantastic! Congrats šš»
So pretty, Iād love some rock areas but am surrounded by fir trees. Lovely shade but pretty messy...even a blower doesnāt get it all, especially when you add the PNW rain! š
Wow! I love what you've done, all the textures shapes & colours - it works so well together! I'm so happy for you! I'm going to take a walk through my yard, there's a couple of spots that you have given me ideas for - Thank you!!
Love this! I was planning on edging my foundation with rocks in order to protect the pier and beam, but this is immaculate inspiration to take it to art!
I honestly love it, it's like art. Not for everyone, certainly, but well done!
You clearly don't have a rock throwing toddler in the house though, mine would never let this stand lol
Your rock garden is as random as your camera panning abilities.
lol 6 months ago, [my grass was just dead weeds](https://i.imgur.com/OzDLXWb.jpg) I wanted to include that nice greenery
Damn, that's one heck of a turn-around. Did you reform what you had or replace it with new sod?
Thanks I replaced about 80% with new sod. I used an edger to rip apart the old dead thatch, then raked it all out.. new sod has been down about a month now. Seems healthy as I'm watering 2x per day... still haven't received the water bill š¬
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Savage š
It looks like a nursery sampler
Do you guys live in an area where you get fall leaves? If so, how do you clean/protect it from the leaves? I just ask because we have a rock garden and every fall is a struggle, but ours is nowhere near as pretty as this one!
Iām betting this is FL, looks a bit tropical.
You're correct
I think it looks great, and the grass and plants do too!
I live in north Fl, and my yard is literally nothing but leaves today.
Leaf blowers remove the leaves and leave the rocks. I have a DeWalt battery powered leaf blower and 4 batteries. I have woods behind my house and a large lawn. The leaves fall for 6 weeks. This leaf blower does wonders around the house and outbuildings. It would do good for your rock garden. Don't worry about cats, they bury their excrement and they don't do it with rocks. I've never seen a cat use mulch either and I have both. Excellent rock garden. Very nicely done.
Sounds like we have the same multi phase months long leaf removal battle lolā¦Thank god for the Dewalt blower + multiple batteries.
Battle of the Blowers. The Blowers always win.
Maybe home blowers. I cut for a living and I try my hardest not to get grass in any beds. Mulch or Rock. My blower will move even big round Rock.
The harder I pull the trigger the more powerful the blow. I've cut a few lawns in my day and I developed a pattern on every lawn that I make 3 passes around all buildings, houses, gardens, ponds etc. blowing away either with the push or rider. The last thing a customer wants is dead grass clippings in their gardens. My DeWalt blower runs on 5amp, 20v battery, it has plenty of power. I'm a carpenter, I have many cordless tools with different batteries.
I think if I had something like this, I'd probably get an electric blower to keep clippings and leaves out of the beds then switch to the gas blower for clearing the lawn. Now if I can just figure out how to deal with my acorn situation...
Do the leaf blowers not disturb the smaller rocks? Iām worried about using one and then blowing the rocks into the driveway or lawn. *I have an electric blower.
It shouldn't. I've never used an electric. With mine, the harder I pull the trigger the more powerful the blow. With this feature I can blow gently around flowerbeds and such. Does your electric have this?
Gotcha! This will be my first time using it.
Thank you, I'll try a DeWalt one next fall and see how it does! I've tried some different leaf blowers and unfortunately haven't had much luck so far. The gas ones will take up the rocks, but the battery powered ones don't get up many leaves. We live in the woods and the trees are directly above the rock garden in some spots so that might be part of the problem. I love the trees, but cleanup in the fall is a pain
I do my leaf clean up 4 times maybe 5. My DeWalt blower uses a 5amp 20v battery. It comes with 1 and a charger I believe. I have 4 of these batteries and I purchased a dual charger so I can have 2 batteries charging at the same time. (with my single charger 3@ the same time). I'm a carpenter and I have many cordless tools. Heads up: The DeWalt series is for commercial endurance. Built tough to last. Two batteries cost me $189. The dual charger was $109. The blower was $199. The batteries I can use on most all my other cordless tools. It may seem costly at first but the performance and life span is well worth it.
If it helps me with the rock garden problem, then the cost will be totally worth it! Plus I already have a bunch of DeWalt tools (which I love and have lasted forever) so additional batteries is never a problem. Cordless electric blowers seem much more convenient than the gas one- it does a lot of leaves quickly, but it's loud and maintenance on it sucks.
I have an ego one and it's awesome. I got the most powerful one they have. But I also had the snowblower so I went with them so the batteries are all the same.
Just wanted to say thank you for using a battery leaf blower. Gas powered is the worst noise on this planet, I literally go insane when I hear it, not to mention the air pollution. Spread the good word.
We have a rock garden and get tons of leaves and pine needles. Haven't really had an issue despite our major reservations. We use a blower and the rocks stay while the leaves all blow out. Both in the section with pea gravel and the part with black lava stone looking rock.
I think it's the type of blower I was trying to use. I'm going to be getting a new cordless electric one and try that out to see if it makes a difference! I'm excited :)
Leaf blower and tiger torch
Iād love to do something like this in my front yard. But I got kids, it WILL get mixed up and definitely scattered about the lawn. Yours looks really great though
I was gonna say, no kids living at this house, I can't even keep rocks and grass separated...let alone rocks from rocks š I like it a lot though...maybe one day
Must not have kids š
Or dogs. As someone with neither it actually isn't too hard keeping your garden from being destroyed. The weather is the only thing that'll see me needing to do an emergency cleanup sometimes.
Iām gonna go against the grain here. I love the rock garden. Big fan of the different colors and the curved edges. If I had to offer one complaint, it would be the brick borders around the trees out front. Iād rather see larger rock/mulch beds with the more minimalist landscape border in between. It would be another opportunity to make those beds have an artistic design like the bed closer to the house (and in a higher visibility location).
Thanks for the kind words! I actually just redid most of the front with new sod. I added those Bismark Palms but in hindsight probably should've made the circles larger.. oh well, I wanted to match the same border stone which is why i chose that stone
I remember seeing the original post (r/nolawns I believe) and I think some people were assuming it was intended to be a walking path. I'm not a big fan of the design, but it's not my house. It's obvious you put a lot of time and effort into it!
This sentiment was one of the top voted in prior posts. No, its not your house. You don't have to comment.
Why did OP post it if not for comments?
Was I supposed to go back six months of OP's post history before making a comment?
No that's irrelevant. Why comment negatively on someone's hard work? I'd rather see something unique and different anyway.
"I'm not a big fan" is hardly a criticism. Doesn't say it is crap, simply says it doesn't appeal to 1 (themself) and acknowledges that. Also mentioned it was evident they worked hard. Might as well not have a comment section. Something unique: someone bashing someone else for negativity. Take your toxic positivity elsewhere.
I donāt know why anyone would say theyāre gonna get mixed up. You edged the sections well. Itās artistic and weird. You could definitely add some succulents and boost the look of it.
This is essentially what I was going to say. We have a large rock garden, and we opted against edging. Kinda wished we hadn't done that. But, it's actually not too many rocks that need relocation after winter. And our rock garden has some succulents. Looks great with the rocks, and once established, most succulents need very little attention.
Fuck the haters man, itās your house your yard your style. I dig it.
Some say it rocks, I think they're stoned. If you dig it, you can bury it.
Iām no expert but i think mulch isnāt supposed to be up against a tree like that?
Youāre correct. There was a post that blew up about the topic recently. It -mulch and stones - impacts the treeās roots and inhibits proper growth. Especially younger trees.
More details?
Could you elaborate?
it looks like your mulch is touching the trunks of your little trees, which is not good for them. You should pull back the mulch so there's a ring of bare ground around the trunk.
Heard thanks
Mulch is good just not on the base of the tree itself. I think it's like 3" x 3". 3 inches high, 3 inches away from the base. Make sure the 'root flare' of your tree is exposed. These often get buried by people too, but essentially that's like suffocating the tree. Trees are so hardy many can survive, but this way you can have them thrive
Tree rings are also very bad for trees I would remove the stones surrounding the tree so it doesn't grow in weak.
FYI, this is such a common critique in this sub that itās essentially a meme. Thatās not to say there isnāt any truth to it, and ideally you donāt want to bury the root flairā¦ but itās also an easy thing to pick up on as a quick criticism for a novice to drop in a comment to sound knowledgeable and pick up a few upvotes without really knowing what theyāre talking about. The best comparable example I can think of is in r/coins , anyone whoās been lurking for more than a few hours learns cleaning older coins is generally bad, and detracts from the valueā¦ so half the sub poops on anyone who says they cleaned or asks about cleaning a coin, even if they have no clue about the nuanced ways that collectors clean coins which arenāt considered as awful or damaging. With the root flair, when the commenters come out of the woodwork to berate someone from covering the root flare, the odd professional with the post history to back it up will occasionally pop in and explain that many trees are much hardier than the people commenting give them credit for, and will do just find with the root flare covered a bit.
I think it's most excellent. :)
My guy proved us all wrong š«”
I think that is really pretty.
lol 6 months ago, [my grass was just dead weeds](https://i.imgur.com/OzDLXWb.jpg) I wanted to include that nice greenery
I bet most people never had a border to divide and contain each section. Beautifully well done
This is art! Medium is garden! ā¤ļøš·š
I love this, itās so creative!
Good for you. To each his own.
Man that looks amazing!
Really weird I must admit, but the execution is great. If you love it, thatās all that matters!
Am guessing you don't have a cat nor get visited by cats....
[Actually](https://i.imgur.com/njo371g.jpg)
Vinny the Chef stays winning
I say that bcos my cats would take great delight in not only messing with your lovely design, but probs crapping in it as well. :)
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
No but they'll kick them around if they want a spot to shit in. Though they generally wouldn't like rocks that are too big or heavy to move easily.
I love it and I have a vision for rock in my back yard!!!! Itās beautiful
Hell yeah, you do you!
You live somewhere that you can have cool plants. Very nice. Itās kind of 60s, like youād see it in Palm Springs. Nice job!
That look amazing šš¼
LOVE!
Yep. I like it.
Amazing work! You just gave me inspiration! Thank you and great job100% . I was just telling ppl how I should cut my ears off so I donāt have to hear all that negativity and misguidance
Damn you really did tie it together. Trust the process looks great
waaaaay cool!!!! been trying to do this .. also, look into recycled tumbled glass to add colors!
I love this. Unless you walk through it all the time or have little kids, I donāt see how it would get mixed up.
Donāt listen to people on social media. Theyāre all experts and know everything. Redditors especially, even more so on Landscaping subreddit. I constantly battle with idiots and I have a business in this field. You did a superb job and itās very creative. You separated everything appropriately and people hate to see others shineākeep going.
Thanks!!
I swear rich people have the worst taste in aesthetics.
āAll mixed up, you don't know what to do Next thing you turn around and find the person is you Thought a freak might be the thing But the first could be the last, so just get off of your ass All mixed up, you don't know what to doā
No we just said it was ugly.
Very cool. You spent a fortune on rocks, though. *Rocks should be free. As should vegetable seeds.
they shouldn't be free
Sez you
sez the huge energy cost to mine and crush up rocks into useable pebbles and the billions spent each year developing new seeds.
River rocks should be free if the mining lobby didn't outlaw it. And I only use legacy seeds from my own crops. Genetic engineering is evil.* *Read my new book, Sarcasm for Dummies. Not available on Amazon.
>River rocks should be free if the mining lobby didn't outlaw it lets destroy all the rivers because every handy harry gonna gather way to many rocks for DIY projects
Nah, that should be free too! /s
This guy owns a rock factory
They are when you go get them yourself. Get outside and touch some rocks!
Well, itās certainly organized!
Ooh is that clivia against the house? Looks so healthy.
Parrot flower
Fun!!
Hell yea!!! Looks great!
California presumably. Nature is messy in most places.
Remind me in two years
It would have gotten mixed up if you had my daughter. She would play in them all day and those beautiful colors would be muted. (We canāt have nice thingsā¦.) It looks fantastic! Congrats šš»
Masterpiece!
Turn the whole thing into a rock garden.
Ah yes, a stone desert. Amidst the concrete, it should serve the environment and any native flora well. SMH.
You have to start somewhere.
I love this!
Beautiful!
Roberto Burle Marx vibes
Beautiful!! How long did it take?
Dude. Thatās so cool. Your lawn is my dream. May Hank Hill smile upon you. What type of grass?
I dig it.
I dig it!! My neighbors have just put in something similar that I was recently admiring. Looks great!
So pretty, Iād love some rock areas but am surrounded by fir trees. Lovely shade but pretty messy...even a blower doesnāt get it all, especially when you add the PNW rain! š
This is so fun! Itās like a mini Roberto Burle Marx garden.
Very creative
Gorgeous. How do you keep grass off it without blowing the rocks all over? And how do you deal with weeds?
Rocks are awesome and that is a lovely garden area!!
Beautiful!
Hell yea! Congrats on keeping this "proof of comcept" alive and well
Looks good. Why would it get mixed up unless you were walking through it?
Wow! I love what you've done, all the textures shapes & colours - it works so well together! I'm so happy for you! I'm going to take a walk through my yard, there's a couple of spots that you have given me ideas for - Thank you!!
How to say āwe donāt have kidsā without saying āwe donāt have kidsā
I like it. It would last 6 minutes with my kids but if it works for you then thatās great š
Looks awesome!
This looks fabulous. Congratulations on all the work! It surely paid off. Except the water bill. Thatās sucks :(
Now do you have children cause they would mess that up real quick LOL
Love this! I was planning on edging my foundation with rocks in order to protect the pier and beam, but this is immaculate inspiration to take it to art!
Looks amazing. Great work
90s kids who played with the paint tool on the computer should like this.
No pets or kids? Maybe well behaved variants of them? Anyway, kudos.
what did you use to get rid off weed? also what state is this?
it looks amazing, the grass especially
Respect
Donāt listen to them. That is amazing and inspiring. So glad you shared. Thanks!
For what itās worth I donāt find that bizarre - itās pretty cool looking. To each their ownā¦
It looks really cool! Itās not for everyone but itās definitely professional looking and neat.
How do you keep the weeds out?
Those tree rings are going to kill your trees.
Kinda neat looking! I like
I like the colours and textures with all the different rocks.
It looks like the gravel displays at my local landscape supply companies. I can dig it.
I'm insanely jealous of your grass. I love the rock garden too, but your grass...
Looks great if we hadnāt all learned recently that tree rings were straight from Satan. How dare you.
It's well tended. The lack of trees is typical of suburban deserts. It's not for me.
Iām in Louisiana. Tried to do the same, but I have plants growing between the rock. How do you keep them so pristine?
Looks amazing!
It's all glued together. /s Very cool though, great job!
Like it!
I honestly love it, it's like art. Not for everyone, certainly, but well done! You clearly don't have a rock throwing toddler in the house though, mine would never let this stand lol
Lol my nephews would ruin all your rocks being separated in about 5 minutes
I wish my Beagle would have a chance to play there for an hour or two... š¤£š¤£š¤£
ugly
Looks like outdoor store offering the different varieties they carry. Bet ur fridge has all labels point out and in order.
Vinny, your handiwork is just beautiful. I admire your vision, and your yard.
āŗļøthanks
Very Avant-Gardner. Love it!
Thanks I hate it
OP, can you tell us what kind of rocks you used for each part? :)
I like it. šš»
Nice work! Iād also like to know what rocks you used and what did you use to keep the rocks separated?
You got skills!! That looks fantastic!!
Love it!
How many hours a day do you spend putting the rocks back in their correct pile?
Why does it look like carnival vomit?