Do you lack the time for the time-consuming care of perennials, shrubs and trees? Then you can easily design your front yard with grass and gravel. This guide provides helpful tips on how the combination can become an aesthetic experience.

Gravel and grass look modern and are easy to care for

The best types of gravel for the front yard - tips for choosing

Don't reach for the first grit (46.95€) or gravel from the hardware store to make your front yard easy to care for. Careful selection of the right type of gravel paves the way to a tasteful appearance beyond a dull stone desert. We have compiled recommended stone types for a stylish gravel bed for you here:

  • Marble gravel, pure white, the classic for modern and Japanese front garden design
  • Quartz gravel, very nice with black and white veined stones for decorative accents
  • Basalt gravel in extra black creates furious contrasts with white marble gravel
  • Rose quartz unfolds an elegant and romantic flair in the front garden of a country house with delicate pink tones

Common grits for ornamental gravel are 16/25 to 25/40. By working with different grain sizes within one type of gravel, you create a subtle change in the visual effect.

These grasses form a wonderful partnership with gravel

Grass and gravel stage a front yard whose visual aura is reduced to clear shapes without appearing boring. We have selected the most beautiful species from the wide range of ornamental grasses:

  • Blue fescue (Festuca cinerea) with impressive steel blue to ice blue culms; 15-25cm
  • Blue oat (Helictotrichon sempervirens) spreads Mediterranean flair with yellow spike blossoms over blue stalks; 60 cm
  • Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) with its majestic stature likes to take on the function of a leading plant; 120-150cm
  • Mosquito grass (Bouteloua gracilis) enchants with filigree spike flowers and leaf textures; 20-40cm

A prime example of the perfect ornamental grass in the gravel bed is bearskin fescue (Festuca gautieri 'Pic Carlit'). Its hemispherical tufts of grass with sharp, fresh green stalks unfold in all their splendor where sunny, sandy-lean conditions prevail.

tips

The combination of grass and gravel is not recommended for a front garden on the north side. Due to the damp and cool microclimate, the stones are regularly covered with algae and moss. For shady locations, robust ground cover, such as ivy (Hedera helix) or fat man (Pachysandra terminalis), are better suited than a mulch layer of gravel.

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Care tips