Natural stones are extremely versatile: you can not only use them to recreate mini rock landscapes like in real nature, but you can also use the different rocks to build walls, stairs, stone furniture or even stone garden houses. The stones can also be used for paving and paths.
How do I create a natural rock garden?
To create a natural rock garden, choose suitable stones such as limestone or silicate rock, which influence the soil pH value. Design the garden with limestone nodules, shell limestone, Jurassic limestone or gneiss and slate. Pay attention to suitable plants and occupational safety measures.
Not every stone is suitable for every plant
The gardener distinguishes between two groups of natural stones, each of which has a different effect on the soil and therefore also on the plants growing on it. Peaty-humus, acidic soils with pH values between 4.5 and 5.5 develop on silicate or primary rocks. Only calcareous plants thrive here. All others need limestone, because this creates clayey, basic or alkaline soils with a high pH value between 7.5 and 8.5. Most mountain plants suitable for rock gardens are adapted to this soil, which is why you are better off choosing limestone decide - the selection of suitable plants is simply significantly larger.
The most beautiful stones for the natural rock garden
Depending on their origin, most rocks are colored differently. The white, gray or grey-green shell limestone as well as the more yellowish Jurassic limestone look particularly interesting in the rock garden. So-called limestones with their numerous holes, on the other hand, offer many options for planting. These types of rock are quite soft and weather quite quickly, in contrast to the harder limestone rocks dolomite and marble - however, these are only suitable for planting to a limited extent. The lime tuff, which is unfortunately quite expensive, is particularly popular, but is ideal for use in the rock garden. This is a very hard limestone rock that was built up by corals. Lime tuff is also sold under the name spaghetti stone or coral limestone.
Which silicate rocks are suitable for the rock garden?
When it comes to silicate rocks, granite, serpentine and greywacke are particularly hard. Sandstone, porphyry tuff and the less suitable lava weather more easily. Gneiss and slate are particularly suitable. Bas alt and diabase, on the other hand, are more problematic because these types are very base-rich and can significantly increase the pH value.
It is important to emphasize occupational safety
If you work with stones, you need appropriate occupational safety equipment (€72.00 at Amazon). Gloves should be a given when handling a few small stones, but safety shoes are also a sensible purchase for more extensive work.
Tip
Instead of buying expensive stones from specialist retailers, just ask the nearest farmer for collected field stones. These are regularly collected from the fields because they hinder the large machines.