I've been struggling to decide what sort of paths I want to have in my garden for some time now. First I had grass (left over from the original weedy lawn) then I had mulch. Now I have beaten earth. I've considered bricks, pebbles, concrete, stone--all have their pluses and minuses--and I just haven't been able to make up my mind.

But lately I've been thinking about something else altogether. Instead of having a traditional path, I would have large, rather thick stepping stones (I'm making these out of concrete)that meander through a patchwork of low ground covers: these groundcovers will be massed, but there will be many different types: I'm hoping the groupings will give order, while the variety will add interest. The key is that they will be LOW, so that I can step from stone to stone easily. On either side of this "path" will be the existing "beds"--which themselves are patchworks of larger plants, also in informal groups. So, in other words, instead of walking THROUGH the garden, you walk INTO the garden. There will be no "path" in the traditional sense of the word. There will be beds of very low plants with stones for easy crossing.

I realize that this kind of path has many drawbacks too: it's not the best sort of garden to, say, throw a garden party in, and it would be tricky pushing a wheelbarrow. (I would try to use groundcovers tough enough to get away with dragging a hose over them though). But I don't throw big garden parties anyway (too many bugs in Central Florida) and Iuse a bucket and basket far more than a wheelbarrow. I have a small garden, and I want to capitalize on space, and it would allow me to have lots of cool green surface without lawn.

Still, I'm a little nervous, mainly because I've never seen this kind of garden. I have seen a few pictures, but even these are few and far between.

So I was wondering, do any of you know of such a garden? Can you direct me to pictures of such a garden? (Books, websites, magazines, or your own: any pictures would be helpful).Do you think such a garden would "work"?

Thank you,

Bill