I've been wondering the same thing! When I called around to find rocks to edge my new bed, I was quoted $600 per pallet. Ouch!!! DH says there are tons of rock on the roadside on the way to some of his jobsites, and that he could pick some up for me, but I wasn't sure if it was legal. Besides, I don't think he realizes that I need probably 50 - 100 of them. So, for now, I'm still rockless.

I'm anxious to see if anyone else will pipe up with an answer for us!

Bonnie

Is anybody looking???

IÂm usually pretty surreptitious when I appropriate rocks for myself! I donÂt have any idea if/where itÂs legal, and I never pick them up when IÂm in a Natl. Park or somewhere like that. Most often IÂll look for them when IÂm on a side road somewhere, driving slowly, doing scenery, so itÂs easy to pull over and thereÂs usually not much traffic. If I do happen to be on a more main road, I kinda watch for a time when thereÂs no traffic. I always kinda figured there isnÂt any actual law prohibiting the appropriation of rocks since itÂs the ROCKY Mountains, and probably most out-of-state tourists take a few souvenirs home with them, but I donÂt know that for sure. And IÂve always wondered, too, where all the moss rock, and other rock, that you can get at garden centers is from! Moss rock doesnÂt come in "mines," so does somebody just go out and start loading it up, or do they have contracts with people who own private property or something? IÂve always been kind of curious about rock appropriation, so if anybody has any "real" information, IÂd be interested in the statutes that govern this issue!

Just close your eyes when you get them and nobody will see you,
Skybird

Don't do it on BLM or Forest Service land - thats a crime, or you need a permit. I know this from a friend who does moss-rock fireplaces.

Generally, in an ag community, private property runs to the middle of the road, so what ever is in the ditch belongs to the property owner on that side of the mid-line. In practical terms, if you can figure out who owns the land and phone them up and ask, they're more than happy to have you haul them off. I saw this today as folks are burning the ditches, all these big rocks in the borrow ditch along the road, thrown out from the pasture. I can't imagine they'd mind anyone taking all they wanted.

Practically speaking, if they don't answer the phone after a few tries, then they aren't home, and then I'd just go get them. Here, folks have been known to do that with ripe apples as well.

One of the former residents of our house was a rock hound. I've found rocks all over the place. In one small bed out back there were a lot of flagstone-type pieces. I dug them out of that bed and this year will place them in new beds as stepping stones.

Then there were all the smaller pieces of quartz, petrified wood, granite... I used these to edge a flower bed.

There are also some larger (almost too big for me to lift) pieces of quartz that I've used as accents.

And finally, which I'm sure was illegally acquired, there is a huge piece of petrified wood (about 3 feet long, 1 foot diameter) that I can't even move. I found this piece this spring under over grown shrubs I was cleaning up. I plan on using this, and some of the other big pieces to create a little rock garden for sedums and such.

Alice

HMMM. I looked up the USFS permitting info, and it says the permit is free. I am going to see if I can get one to pick up some river rock in nearby La Plata canyon.

We do own an old mine, but it's waaaaay up there in the mountains. Guess I could legally pick up all the rocks I want there!

I love rocks, too. We have round ones, flat sandstone, the funky rocks that look like brains, and a barrel of really interesting rocks that we bought when rock company went out of business.

And my favorite found rock. I went looking for rocks, and this one smiled at me.

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Cheers,
Michelle

I love your smiling rock, Michelle!

Where on the USFS site did you find information specific to rock collecting? I just looked all over and found firewood, xmas tree, and some other info, but where it was listing the possible kinds of permits, it only said "collecting," without specifying collecting WHAT, and didn't have any other info at all. Could you link the page where you found the info? I'd love to know for when I go on vacation in September.

Skybird

I hope this applies to my area...

Rock collecting info

Forest Service collecting rules: Rock, mineral, and fossil collecting on lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service requires a permit, which is free to the public. The permit allows one to collect small amounts of material for personal use.

There are some great areas nearby on BLM for petrified wood. I think the permit for that is free, also.

If I find any different information, I will post back. I am going to look into this, though, as I've wanted some of the round river rock.

Cheers,
Michelle

I,ve been curious about that too. Michelle's link did not work for me, but I did find this one.

"Rock hunting (surface collection of rocks and agates, excluding meteorites and fossils), for personal, hobby, and noncommercial use only, is allowed without a permit. For other uses of rock material, contact the local Forest Service Office. Trading, bartering, or selling rocks and agates from National Forest System Lands is not allowed."

Here is a link that might be useful: USDA Rockhounding

Good to know that all the rocks I have "conscripted" were not the result of an illegal act! I love collecting rocks, too, and have rescued many from the sides of highways.

I have also been known to buy some from local Denver-metro nurseries, but that does get expensive!

Should anyone in the Denver area be in the market for rocks, one place that has decent prices and a great collection of different flagstones, moss rock, etc., is Camp Stone. Of course, finding free rocks is much more satisfying. :-)

Holly

Here is a link that might be useful: Camp Stone for flagstone, etc.

I have rocks!!!

DH stopped and loaded up the back of his truck Friday evening. He called me on his way back and said, "A cop's been following me ever since I pulled out of there." He was teasing, of course!

Anyway, I spent the whole day digging, leveling, and moving rocks. Here is the result:

Hey, this is totally OT, but the whole top right side of the Wichita juniper in the photo is missing its branches, due to the kids hitting it with a ball this winter. If I cut the top portion off, will it kill the tree, or will it grow a new leader? Or is this thing a goner anyway?

Bonnie

Those rocks are gorgeous, Bonnie! I'm jealous!!! I have been picking up lots of round rocks the last few days... Will post some photos. If I can get the new beds from last year all edged with stones, I will be a happy gardener.

Guess I need to take a trip up Red Mountain. I love those red stones!

Cheers,
Michelle

Lol! I have the opposite problem...got rocks need soil. Even so, I am a rock hound and scavenge our property relentlessly for rocks to use in raised beds since I can't dig down. (My hub and kids hate it when I get that "let's move rocks" look!)

Saw a truck with a flatbed leaving the area last week that was loaded with big moss boulders, so I guess it's a lucrative enterprise.

Roughly 10 years ago, I went fishing with my friend the moss-rock fireplace guy, and we stopped by some skree pile along side the road and he was picking up a few specimens when a forest service guy came along, and really chewed the guy, who was in his 70's, out. My friend later went to the forest service office and got a $10 permit. It was no biggy. Maybe because it was for 'commercial use'? Maybe its changed.

Here, we got sand stone. Lots of sand stone. Everywhere.

This snow faeries is spending the summer rockin'. Please note, one rock was wrapped with barbed wire. That is just too cool. These are from a cordial neighbor's field & they are big stones.
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2008 photo, things are gettin' rocky around the new bed. This bed is planted with lots of daylilies, iris, roses, and some other miscellany.
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April 2007:
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Should be a fun flowerbed once it's established! It will be neat to look back at these photos at end of summer. I love the before and afters!

Cheers,
Michelle

Sure wish I had a little bit of that heavy equipment around here! The only equipment I have--and it's not very heavy--is two arms and two legs!

You ROCK, girl!
Skybird