Easy to maintain, weed-free and ultra-modern: these are the arguments used to promote gravel gardens. However, these stone desert-like gardens are far from being easy to maintain and weed-free.
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| 7 reasons against a gravel garden |
In a gravel garden, a metal fence encloses an area of gray gravel or rubble stones. Plants? No sign of them, they only grow individually or as topiary. Gravel gardens are often created to avoid tedious gardening. Unfortunately, that doesn’t work – and there are many other things that speak against gravel gardens.
Gravel gardens are far from being easy to care for and weed-free. Just as far as classic rock gardens or prairie gardens – these are something completely different and only look like stone surfaces at first glance. At second glance, the flowering plants in a rock garden are noticeable, providing plenty of food for insects. Under a rock garden , as under a prairie garden, there is living soil with plenty of microorganisms for the natural decomposition and conversion of substances. A rock garden offers an ideal location for alpine or drought-tolerant plants; stones or chippings only thin out the soil, serve as decoration and ensure perfect drainage. In a prairie garden, too, heat-resistant plants grow in natural soil; gravel or lava chippings only serve as mulch and protect the soil like a kind of parasol.
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| 7 reasons against a gravel garden |
Gravel gardens are a trend that is increasingly being criticized in Germany. In some municipalities, gravel gardens are even already banned . For example, the city of Erlangen has issued a ban on gravel gardens in new buildings and renovations. Other municipalities are on the same path and want to promote more nature in the garden. The following reasons speak against gravel gardens:
1. Gravel gardens are biologically almost dead
Even many real deserts are more lively than the artificial stone deserts of front gardens. For many bees , butterflies , bumblebees, birds and other animals, gardens with their mix of greenery and flowers are important habitats, sources of food and also nurseries. What about gravel gardens? Absolutely not. The area is completely uninteresting for insects and birds and is like a concrete surface. Perhaps woodlice still feel at home there. A comparatively small front garden can surely have no effect on the insects in the area? Of course, every plant counts for nature, bees and other insects do find the flowers in the garden. In addition, from the eyes of insects and birds, front gardens in a residential area and even a municipality complement each other to form a single area.
2. Gravel gardens damage the soil
It is compressed by the gravel, is dry, structureless and almost lifeless: the soil under a gravel garden has to put up with a lot and can become waterlogged when it rains. However, despite the water-permeable weed control film, the water often does not drain away well when the weight of the stones presses down on it. Even if the water finds its way into the soil, the soil cannot hold it because it lacks humus. In heavy rain, it does not flow into the soil, but rather into the cellar or onto the street and ends up unfiltered in the groundwater. The damage to the soil is so lasting that it is difficult to dismantle and create a normal garden because the soil needs years to recover. This requires a lot of humus, patience and plants.
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| 7 reasons against a gravel garden |
3. Gravel gardens require a lot of care in the long run
Low maintenance? Gravel gardens really are – in the first year. Maybe a few months longer. But then regular maintenance is required. Autumn leaves and flower petals also end up in gravel gardens – if not from your own garden, then from the neighborhood. Dry leaves cannot be raked or swept away; they hide between the stones and remain out of reach of the rake. Only a loud leaf blower might manage to clean the bed. Wind and rain bring flower pollen into the garden. This collects in niches between the stones and eventually forms a usable substrate for weeds.
The weed fleece that has been laid out is ineffective when weed seeds fly in in squadrons and always find a place to germinate and grow in the gaps. After all, they are not robust survivors for nothing. And then you really have a problem: Maintenance becomes tedious. Hoeing is not possible; the blades or tines of the tools simply bounce off the stones. Pull it out? That doesn’t work either, as the plants will be torn off and new ones will sprout. The gravel will also quickly become covered in algae and moss – a case for laborious hand washing or a high-pressure cleaner.
4. Gravel gardens are bad for the microclimate
Plants evaporate moisture and cool down the immediate surroundings. Stones cannot do this. Without protective plants or trees that provide shade, gravel gardens heat up much more in the sun than natural gardens and radiate the heat back out in the evening. And this is not just a theoretical effect, you can notice it. Especially with other gravel gardens in the neighborhood, it adds up to quite a lot. The high temperatures literally fry the sparse vegetation in the gravel garden – it eventually dries out or dies, no matter how much you water it. Dense foliage from trees and bushes in the front garden filters dust out of the air. Gravel cannot do this – but it can amplify the noise of passing cars.
5. Gravel gardens are expensive
Creating gravel gardens is expensive. The often elaborately trimmed topiaries are very expensive and the gravel itself is expensive, including delivery. Prices of 100 euros or more per ton are not uncommon – and a lot of gravel can fit into the garden. In many municipalities, gravel gardens are considered sealed areas, and sewage charges may also be due.
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6. Gravel gardens have a bad climate footprint
Wherever you look in the gravel garden, everything is produced or brought in using a lot of energy: mining and grinding stones are energy-intensive, not to mention transport. The weed control fleece also uses a lot of energy and petroleum to produce and also creates problematic waste when the fleece has to be disposed of again. Plants bind CO2 – a gravel garden with only sparse plants at most does not stand out particularly. When the gravel is full of leaves or has turned green and ugly, it has to be cleaned. The high-pressure cleaners or leaf blowers required for this use up even more energy. The stone surface lasts for ten years, sometimes longer. Then the weed control fleece and often the gravel that has become unsightly have to be replaced.
7. Gravel gardens are not beautiful
Well, the purist look is a matter of taste. But the really beautiful thing about a garden is the seasonal changes and the variety. No scents, no fruit – a gravel garden always looks the same.
Remove existing gravel garden – action for more greenery
Do you already have a gravel garden and would like to turn it back into a living green space for nature? In 2015, the Illertisser Stiftung Gartenkultur launched the ” Entsteint Euch! ” campaign to turn gravel areas into flowering gardens and a habitat for insects. On a specially created area, you have the opportunity to symbolically dispose of some of the removed gravel if you want to remove the gravel area in your garden. As a reward, you will receive soil activator and green manure to revitalize your garden soil. On the museum’s website you will also find instructions on how to remove the gravel properly.
