Chippings/Stone for garden

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Nice Day

Guest
Just wondering if there is an alternative to wood chippings and stone for a back garden..
Grass is a no go due to very poor light.. Would prefer chippings with stepping stones but they can be pretty dark when wet.. Stones can be bright but not very comfortable or child friendly..

Any suggestions on new modern materials?

Thanks in advance!
 
Nice Day said:
Just wondering if there is an alternative to wood chippings and stone for a back garden..
Grass is a no go due to very poor light.. Would prefer chippings with stepping stones but they can be pretty dark when wet.. Stones can be bright but not very comfortable or child friendly..

Any suggestions on new modern materials?

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

Hi Nice Day,

when considering what materials to use in a garden a number of factors need to be carefully considered including: orientation (ie south facing = sunny or north facing = cool/damp), children friendly, low maintenance but colourful, pet friendly etc etc.
The choice of material is wide and very often final selection usually involves a combination of usually 2 but sometimes as many as 5 distinct materials/finishes.

Stone paving is popular so too are stone pebble (more attractive but more difficult to walk on than stone chippings). A combination of pebble/chippings with stepping stones is a popular rustic look, but beware pebble snear grass areas not good for moweres, also very young children are very fond of pebbles and tend to disperse them throughout the garden. Grass suffers in damp areas, decking even more so, today however there are composite decks (essentially a recycled based plastic with wood grain). Newer qualities are more attractive but very expensive. On the lower cost side it is possible to instal synthetic grass, we're all familair with astro turf, there good quality grades now available for residential gardens and cost can vary considerably. At or near play areas, it is also worth consider rubber paving (originally developed for playground use in germany), excellent durability, soft and easy to clean, but costs can be a factor.

Be careful when using wood chippings, not recommended for children play areas, become very slippery when wet and attract cats for the wrong reasons which could present hygiene risks for children.

Finally whatever material you choose especially timber/stone based products, all will darken when wet and conversely brighten when dry.

There are more but this is just to give you some direction.
 
Thanks for that Scaper!! Never thought of the cat issue regarding wood chippings.. Had my mind nearly made up on chippings.. Might use stone pebbles as I need access to shores so fake grass is not really an option..

Any other suggestions anyone?
 
access to shores is still possable if you use recess manholes or recess AJ covers. Then the paving or artificial grass can be laid in the lid covers and still leave access to the drains. There will only be a small triangle of metal showing in apposing corners.
Also many varieties of paving are now available in brighter colours. Avoid using decking when u have children as no mater what type of decking used they can become extremely slippery and require constant maintenance to avoid same in winter months. Even "non slip decking" can build up an algae residue during wet periods, therefor better suited to warmer climes, not Ireland, lol.
 
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