7 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Laying Stepping Stones
Bring out your inner child with a pathway that invites you to put a spring in your step ... and serves a useful purpose in your garden
Whether your home is grand or humble, elegant or eclectic, stepping stones can be an enhancing addition that invite you to go on a journey. They can be a fun way to traverse a water feature, lead you up the garden path to your front door, or serve as an enticing way to link your house with another zone in your backyard. Whatever the reason you introduce stepping stones, it pays to get them right. Failure to do so could lead to a high-maintenance eyesore or, worse still, an accident. These stepping stones could be a hop, skip and a jump away from paving the way at your house.
2. What do I need to know about installing them?
The first thing to keep in mind is to be careful about how high or low you install them. “If they are installed too low, the grass will forever grow over the top and you’ll have to carefully cut it back by hand,” Harrison says. “If they’re installed too high, you can’t push the lawn mower over them. I normally aim to set them at top of the soil, so the blades of grass sit above the paver.”
The first thing to keep in mind is to be careful about how high or low you install them. “If they are installed too low, the grass will forever grow over the top and you’ll have to carefully cut it back by hand,” Harrison says. “If they’re installed too high, you can’t push the lawn mower over them. I normally aim to set them at top of the soil, so the blades of grass sit above the paver.”
3. How far apart?
Harrison advises stepping out the placement of stepping stones before you install them. “There’s nothing worse than steppers placed too close together, so you end up shuffling along the pathway,” he says.
TIP: The average person’s stride is about 45cm. If this is the case for you – and the people who will most often be walking the path – place each stone so the centre of each stone is 45cm from the centre of the next. Mark the centre point with spray paint, a tent peg, or similar.
Harrison advises stepping out the placement of stepping stones before you install them. “There’s nothing worse than steppers placed too close together, so you end up shuffling along the pathway,” he says.
TIP: The average person’s stride is about 45cm. If this is the case for you – and the people who will most often be walking the path – place each stone so the centre of each stone is 45cm from the centre of the next. Mark the centre point with spray paint, a tent peg, or similar.
The distance between stepping stones is even more important if they’re being placed over water. Having to spend too much time thinking about where you’re stepping can take away from the experience of ‘walking on water’.
4. What should I put in between the pavers?
If you’re laying your steppers into a healthy lawn, there’s no need to think about what to plant in between the pavers. But if your chosen site is too shady or naturally rocky, you may have to look at other options.
The stepping stones in this Sydney backyard have been laid beside a living room that opens to a grassed courtyard on the south side of the house. Architect Sam Crawford explains that the 1.5m of garden beyond the concertina doors is in full shade in winter. “Grass will not grow under these conditions so the caste in-situ concrete steppers are set amongst native violet – a ground cover that can handle being trodden on,” he says.
How you arrange the stepping stones will also have an impact. “The steppers are randomly sized and spaced to reinforce the informality of the space,” Crawford says.
If you’re laying your steppers into a healthy lawn, there’s no need to think about what to plant in between the pavers. But if your chosen site is too shady or naturally rocky, you may have to look at other options.
The stepping stones in this Sydney backyard have been laid beside a living room that opens to a grassed courtyard on the south side of the house. Architect Sam Crawford explains that the 1.5m of garden beyond the concertina doors is in full shade in winter. “Grass will not grow under these conditions so the caste in-situ concrete steppers are set amongst native violet – a ground cover that can handle being trodden on,” he says.
How you arrange the stepping stones will also have an impact. “The steppers are randomly sized and spaced to reinforce the informality of the space,” Crawford says.
Garden designer Arthur Lathouris also opted for groundcover over grass for this gorgeous garden. “The groundcover is Ajuga reptans ‘Catlins Giant’ and flowers in spring,” Lathouris says. “The flower spikes can be up to 15-20cm high and the ground is a sea of purply blue.”
The stepping stones linking this terrace house to the home office out the back have been installed on artificial grass. And why not? It requires zero maintenance and always looks as though it has been freshly mown! You can see how effective the stepping stones are at creating a pathway without dominating the space.
THAT’S INTERESTING: The sandstone garden edgers are recycled foundation stones from the original house that used to be on this site.
THAT’S INTERESTING: The sandstone garden edgers are recycled foundation stones from the original house that used to be on this site.
5. What should I put under the pavers?
Most stepping stones sit on a foundation of builder’s sand, to give them maximum stability. Stones and pavers can settle and sink over time due to moisture and foot traffic, however, and may need to be lifted from time to time for more sand or soil to be added underneath.
Cement is also an option if you want a rock solid foundation. In this Perth garden, the stepping stones have been mortared in. To cover the cement – and create a striking dry river bed effect – natural glacial river stones found in the south of Western Australia fill the spaces in between.
Most stepping stones sit on a foundation of builder’s sand, to give them maximum stability. Stones and pavers can settle and sink over time due to moisture and foot traffic, however, and may need to be lifted from time to time for more sand or soil to be added underneath.
Cement is also an option if you want a rock solid foundation. In this Perth garden, the stepping stones have been mortared in. To cover the cement – and create a striking dry river bed effect – natural glacial river stones found in the south of Western Australia fill the spaces in between.
6. Why use stepping stones and not a solid pathway?
When you think of stepping stones, you may well assume they are best suited to the backyard, but in this front garden, a stone-clad water feature with floating bench seating and granite tiling creates a feature at the entry to the home. Harrison used light granite pavers to draw the eye towards the water feature and feature wall. Two 300 x 600mm pavers were laid end to end to create each ‘stepping stone’.
“They create a soft pathway to access the side of the house,” Harrison says. “We didn’t want a hard pathway of paving across the front of the property as it would detract from the garden.”
When you think of stepping stones, you may well assume they are best suited to the backyard, but in this front garden, a stone-clad water feature with floating bench seating and granite tiling creates a feature at the entry to the home. Harrison used light granite pavers to draw the eye towards the water feature and feature wall. Two 300 x 600mm pavers were laid end to end to create each ‘stepping stone’.
“They create a soft pathway to access the side of the house,” Harrison says. “We didn’t want a hard pathway of paving across the front of the property as it would detract from the garden.”
In this garden, stepping stones are an ideal link between the paved area with the timber deck. The stepping stone lighting adds a designer edge and ambience in one, but avoids the backyard looking too paved (as a solid pathway could).
TIP: Be sure that you can safely run a lawn mower over the stones, or keeping them looking good will be a chore. If a stone rocks when it’s stepped on, add or dig out sand as needed to stabilise it.
TIP: Be sure that you can safely run a lawn mower over the stones, or keeping them looking good will be a chore. If a stone rocks when it’s stepped on, add or dig out sand as needed to stabilise it.
7. What kind of pavers are best?
Due to the nature of where steppers are normally installed, either through a garden bed or lawn, Harrison avoids materials that are porous, such as sandstone, and instead opts for hard-wearing materials such as Bluestone, granite or travertine.
TIP: If you feel like getting creative, consider making mosaic stepping stones.
YOUR SAY
Do you have any other tips for Houzzers considering stepping stones for their garden? Share them in the Comments.
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Due to the nature of where steppers are normally installed, either through a garden bed or lawn, Harrison avoids materials that are porous, such as sandstone, and instead opts for hard-wearing materials such as Bluestone, granite or travertine.
TIP: If you feel like getting creative, consider making mosaic stepping stones.
YOUR SAY
Do you have any other tips for Houzzers considering stepping stones for their garden? Share them in the Comments.
MORE
Let Houzz Lead You Up the Garden Path
7 Common Garden Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
The Case for a Frill-Free Garden
Deciding on the shape of your stepping stones is the first and often trickiest decision to make.
“Choosing the right format of paver comes down to the style and feel of your garden,” says Josh Harrison from Harrison’s Landscaping. “If you want a natural feel, use a circular organic-shaped stepping stone such as sandstone flagging or organic-shaped Bluestone. If you want a more structured and formal look, go for a square or rectangle paver.” Ideal paver sizes are 400 x 800mm or 500 x 500mm, he says.