Natural stonework Archives - Sustainable Landscapes

How do you deal with a driveway and entrance way that has been overtaken by ivy? The owners wanted a tidy, formal and low maintenance country drive way leading to their rural property on the outskirts of Albany.

The first stage was to clear everything out before we could even begin to visualise what might be. The owners were wanting a stone retainer wall and plantings along the length of the driveway. Low maintenance was a definite requirement.

This was very much a project that evolved as we went. It was impossible to plan this from the outset as we had no idea of what we would discover under the matted ivy.

The entrance before work commenced.

The drive before work commenced.

Making a start – clearing out the ivy

The clearing involved removing the boundary fence and old retaining wall which was falling away. At first we were unaware that it was in such a state as the ivy had covered everything and was making great advancements into the neighbour’s property.

We cleared the foliage with chainsaws, then cleared the roots out with the digger. It was important to get rid of as much of the ivy as possible.

The ivy was cleared by chainsaw.

The ivy growing very well in the retainer wall!

The digger at work.

Building a new retainer wall and fence

Once the area was cleared, it became apparent that the existing retainer fence would need to be replaced. The ivy was clearly well entrenched within it. A new retainer wall and fence, (all in one) was erected. The fence was stained black in keeping with the fence at the front entrance.

A new retainer wall and fence.

Building the stone retainer wall

Black matting was laid over the cleared areas and large paddock rocks were brought in and placed using the Tatonka crane truck. The placement of the rocks was very important so that they were very stable and looked natural. The stone was dry stacked around the larger rocks creating a natural stone retainer wall.

Laying the rocks into place.

Coir matting was used to help create a stable base for the mulch due to the slope. The mulch was placed behind the rocks using the crane truck and bin. This method saves hours of work. The well rotted mulch when applied thickly provides an excellent base for planting.

Coir matting placed under the mulch.

With rocks and mulch in place, the owners chose to complete the project with their own planting.

Low maintenance country drive before and after photos

A recent trip to the Island of Korcula, in Croatia (where Dave’s family originated from), not only revealed extensive use of stone, but how well stones are a great mix with vegetables. As a stonemason, this place is a very interesting place!

Fruit and Vegetable garden in Croatia retained by a stone wall.

Stones do not rot, nor do they leach nasty chemicals into the soil; instead they are a hardy permanent material. Some plants that prefer a good source of heat to grow in, i.e. tomatoes, capsicums or eggplant, thrive particularly well in stoney soil, or planted with larger stones near their roots.

Croatian cabbage in really stoney soil.

The Croatian people are particularly resourceful. Over the thousands of years the island have been inhabited, they have removed stones from the soil, stacked it along walls and used the cleared areas for growing fruit and vegetables. To ensure the cultivated areas were not stomped down by frequent walking, they would walk their donkeys along the stone walls.

Stones are piled into walls.to create growing areas.

What was also of particular note, is that most people grew vegetables in their front garden. They would have plots of land further away from the house as well for cultivation of larger crops, i.e. grapes for wine making or olives for olive oil. Planting food crops in available spaces close to one’s house certainly makes a lot of sense – it makes life so much easier.

Edible gardens are often planted in prominent places.

If you are wanting to create vegetable gardens that are raised and require some sort of retaining work around them, or if you want your edible garden to look more aesthetically pleasing, try using stone, it always looks very natural and it has some wonderful properties. You might even consider placing your edible garden in a more convenient, and even if it means placing it in the front garden or near your entertainment areas, it can still look great!

Low Maintenance Country Drive

Making a start – clearing out the ivy

Building a new retainer wall and fence

Building the stone retainer wall

Edible Gardens in Croatia