# New Landscaping Border



## Grizzly Adam (May 5, 2017)

We have now begun our second major project of the spring, the first being the installation of a irrigation system.

Our landscaping was in disrepair when we bought our house and we have created even more damage by removing bushes that my spouse was allergic to and by installing the valve boxes and supply line for the sprinkler system. The current border stone has sunk so deep into the ground that it is barely visible in places, and it is no longer useful for holding back the rock as it spills out onto the lawn.

A landscaper friend has a "bone pile" of outdated/weathered stone that doesn't match the current batches. He will eventually have to pay to get rid of it so he told us to take as much as we want. It is looking like there will be plenty to complete the project. We are currently 1/4 of the way around the house.

I like how it looks overall, but I think I will be going back and adding a third row where it starts sloping down, just to keep it level and give it a cleaner look.


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## aarogb (Oct 13, 2020)

Looking good! That's a blessing to get that stone for free. It's crazy how expensive it is now.


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## Grizzly Adam (May 5, 2017)

Further progress. I will be backfilling after the stone is laid. I am about 2/3 around the big side. The small side is about the same size as what I did today. Any grass that ends up within the border is going to be transplanted.


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## Grizzly Adam (May 5, 2017)

So, I forgot to take a picture but... we've gotten 3/4 of the way around the house now and all but completed the continuous run from the front door to the back door. We will have one more 45' run on the east side of the house to finish. I have plenty of stone on site now to finish the job. I plan to work on that off and on this week and then take advantage of the long weekend to remove weed and backfill the bed with mulch to get it looking nice. I do have some areas that I am not happy with how the blocks leveled out, so some adjustments will be made yet, but overall the project is going pretty well.

I also picked up some blocks to put under her potted plants, to keep them level. Picture below.

Edit: Pictures added


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## NJlawnguy (8 mo ago)

Damn. Good for you getting all of that for free. Could always look into a concrete stain to try and get the color more uniform.


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## Grizzly Adam (May 5, 2017)

NJlawnguy said:


> Damn. Good for you getting all of that for free. Could always look into a concrete stain to try and get the color more uniform.


The random pattern actually looks really nice in person.


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## NJlawnguy (8 mo ago)

Grizzly Adam said:


> NJlawnguy said:
> 
> 
> > Damn. Good for you getting all of that for free. Could always look into a concrete stain to try and get the color more uniform.
> ...


I could see it working. Doesn't look bad at all. No need to spend time and money if you don't have to.


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## Jeff_MI84 (Sep 28, 2020)

It looks good so far. Very good of your friend to just give it to you. I just took out the pavers from my backyard, probably been in ground for over a decade and I had a lot of people want them. You saved yourself a lot of dough.


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## Grizzly Adam (May 5, 2017)

Some views of the new beds with mulch in them. The mulch is simple shredded wood from our local municipality, is not treated at all. It will decay fairly quickly, but then it will simply become compost. Compost is the other option we have for hauling in for free to back fill with, and this is much less back breaking-- even if we have to do it again next spring and the one after. Eventually, it will stop decaying as quickly and we will need to put in treated mulch to keep it looking fresh without overflowing the retaining walls.

In the last photo, you can see the fake rock that is a hide-away for the sprinkler system's backflow preventer. The rock in the first photo is real.


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## Grizzly Adam (May 5, 2017)

We are still hauling mulch. Today I managed to level the pad under the air conditioner, something that has been bothering me since I moved in. Sometime this summer I think the AC unit will be getting a new coat of paint.


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## Grizzly Adam (May 5, 2017)

Ok, as promised here are "finished" pictures. I want to level some of the bricks in the future, remove a couple bushes, spruce up the rain barrel, and adjust the downspouts until they are "just so," but overall the initial project is done.


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## Ngilbe36 (Jul 23, 2020)

Looks great! Nice job. Its hard to beat free woodchips from the city. I got one truck (10yards) last year and another one coming this year.


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## RowdyBrad (Jun 10, 2021)

Looks great. You may have to redo it if it gets low spots from not having a base. Free and looking good is a great combo though.


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## Grizzly Adam (May 5, 2017)

RowdyBrad said:


> Looks great. You may have to redo it if it gets low spots from not having a base. Free and looking good is a great combo though.


I left the old limestone (that was mostly buried) in place and drove some of it deep with a sledgehammer, so there is some structure under a lot of it.


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