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Permeable Paving Soaks Up Rain
Design garden hardscaping that allows rain to penetrate through to the earth below
I spent many years at Sunset Magazine writing about the fabulous gardens and innovative designers throughout the West. Now, my passion is environmental sustainability—both in gardens and buildings.
I spent many years at Sunset Magazine writing about the fabulous gardens... More »
Attractive patios and walkways are key to a well-designed garden. When thoughtfully created, they invite you into the garden and encourage you to linger. But a potential downside to paving over sections of a garden is that it can create impermeable surfaces. During a rainstorm, water sheets off them and is dumped into storm drains instead of soaking into the soil and recharging the water table.
The good news is that there is a practical and attractive solution: permeable paving, a fundamental feature of sustainable garden design. There are many types of permeable paving. Some manufactured types — particularly asphalt and concrete — are porous, allowing water to seep through them. For home gardens, some of the best solutions are open-grid paving designs and the use of naturally permeable materials, such as gravel and decomposed granite. Here are some of my favorite design ideas for permeable paving.
The good news is that there is a practical and attractive solution: permeable paving, a fundamental feature of sustainable garden design. There are many types of permeable paving. Some manufactured types — particularly asphalt and concrete — are porous, allowing water to seep through them. For home gardens, some of the best solutions are open-grid paving designs and the use of naturally permeable materials, such as gravel and decomposed granite. Here are some of my favorite design ideas for permeable paving.
| When broken into large squares with wide joints, a concrete path turns into permeable paving while still offering a stable surface for walking. Here, the joints are filled with gravel. |
| Linear concrete pads visually break up a large expanse of gravel. Because the strips are narrow, the surface area is highly permeable. |
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by kim E. rooney
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| Irregularly cut pieces of gray flagstone, inset with gravel, give this patio a casual appearance. If the stones had been set with grout, there’s a good chance that rainwater would run off the patio and end up in the neighbors' yard. |
Rectangular granite stepping stones and gray gravel create an informal entry and a permeable path.
Black gravel set between sandstone-colored flagstones adds contrast to the paving design.
In this small backyard, every surface — including the wooden deck, path and planting bed — was designed so that water could easily percolate into the soil rather than run off the property.
| With plenty of room for furniture, this patio made of stone strips provides the same benefits as a solid design, but water can drain through to the soil below. |
Grout can still play a roll in securing stones as long as there's a way for water to permeate the area. Here, the solution was to dissect the solid sections with large grid lines filled with stones.
More:
Patio Pavers Rock Out
Fabulous Patios
Magical Garden Paths
More:
Patio Pavers Rock Out
Fabulous Patios
Magical Garden Paths
Ideabook updated on Nov. 9, 2012.
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Hey Lauren, how about lots more posts about sustainability? I'm trying to work out a pretty "thermal mass" solution for a passive solar house. Any photos for that? Any attractive uses for recycled concrete? Any ideas for attractive urban veggie gardens (all the uphill neighbors can see into our back yard, and I want it to look pretty)? Thanks in advance!