Paving stones in the garden, on the terrace or around the house ensure more order in the outdoor area. Natural stones belong to the oldest form of paving, which indicates their good properties and durability. In addition, you have a wide variety of stone types and colors to choose from, which enables you to design your own garden. How can you lay natural stone paving , which are the best laying patterns and other helpful information and tips can be found in the following.
Laying natural stone paving – the advantages of the material
A variety of natural stones, which have different colors and can be found as large or small plasters, can be used for paving. Natural stone paving is easy to clean, is considered a non-slip surface and is resistant to stains and impurities. Thanks to its robustness and abrasion resistance, the appearance is retained for years, regardless of external influences. In contrast to natural stone slabs, the rainwater seeps away through the joints in the natural stone paving and you shouldn’t provide additional drainage. Natural stones are more expensive than concrete stones, but their lasting color tone and longer service life ensure a worthwhile investment.
Laying natural stone paving – the substructure
Garden paths, terraces, patio areas and driveways can be laid with natural stone paving . Depending on the load, a suitable substructure is required before laying. If you want to pave the garage entrance, a stable base layer of around 25 centimeters is necessary to be able to withstand the motor vehicles. On the other hand, garden paths for pedestrians do not need more than 15 centimeters of substructure. A bedding made of high-grade chippings or crushed sand is placed over the finished base course and evenly distributed horizontally with the help of an aluminum batten.
Lay and joint paving stones correctly
After the substructure is ready, installation begins. For a more stable surface, it would be advisable to design an edge on the edges that will hold the natural stone pavement firmly. The paving stones are then placed individually, adjusted according to their height and the pattern and pinned with a rubber mallet. If the desired area is laid with natural stone paving, the joints should be filled with high-grade chippings or joint mortar. Depending on the laying pattern, there is a different method for laying the individual natural stones.
Laying natural stone paving – the small pavement
Garden paths not only have the function of leading from the gate to the door and enabling clean feet. They have an optical effect and are therefore an inseparable element in garden design. Before laying a garden path with paving, you should always think carefully about what would best suit the house. Some processing details also play an important role and should also be taken into account. The different rocks are characterized by a variety of colors. Such natural stones can be found in different sizes, whereby the cube-shaped ones are mostly used. These usually have a height and width of 9 centimeters and you need about 110 stones per square meter, depending on the pattern. Interesting shapes and patterns can best be achieved with the so-called small plaster. They offer numerous design options to give the terrace or garden path a very individual touch. Mostly black basalt and / or gray granite is used. The material is wonderfully suitable for making palisades, paving, steps, imaginative ornaments or decorative balls and troughs. Natural stone is very popular due to its hardness. It is durable, resilient and comes in many colors – from shades of gray to shades of red, blue and green. The material is wonderfully suitable for making palisades, paving, steps, imaginative ornaments or decorative balls and troughs. Natural stone is very popular due to its hardness. It is durable, resilient and comes in many colors – from shades of gray to shades of red, blue and green. The material is wonderfully suitable for making palisades, paving, steps, imaginative ornaments or decorative balls and troughs. Natural stone is very popular due to its hardness. It is durable, resilient and comes in many colors – from shades of gray to shades of red, blue and green.
Lay natural stone paving in rows
The row connection of the natural stone paving is considered to be the simplest laying pattern – the stones are laid in staggered rows. For a perfect row pavement, you can also use processed natural stones that have the same shape and are suitable for different mosaic patterns. The paving can be laid with or without a joint. Due to the straight edges, this is left out, but 1 to 2 cm margin for corrections must always be allowed for in the calculation. Incidentally, the paving is always laid from the area that has already been covered. Otherwise the freshly stripped sand bed will be destroyed. The best thing to do is to take a panel and place it on the stones. Thus, the freshly laid stones are not destroyed by the careless movements. The stones get their final strength only after grouting with fine sand.
Natural stone pavement laying pattern – the circle
A round natural stone pavement in the garden or on the terrace is very popular because the classic shape has a calming effect and creates an optical illusion for larger areas. A paving circle provides variety and is also a nice way to emphasize a certain area in the garden. Special paving stones are required to get a good circle shape. They are already conical cast or ground and are arranged from the inside to the outside of the circle. This automatically creates a circle when you put them next to each other. However, most manufacturers offer such prefabricated plaster circles. If you want to lay a circle of natural stone paving yourself, the selection of the right paving is essential. A larger amount of stones is recommended for this, so that you can choose the right ones for you. When laying, the joints should not become uneven and disproportionately wide. The best thing to do is to mark a circle first and place a plaster circle in the middle. If you want to go even further in terms of design, you can try a natural stone spiral.
Machined natural stones for perfect shape
Since paving stones do not appear in a perfect trapezoidal shape in nature, you should use processed natural stones for this laying pattern. This is how the perfect round shape is created. Don’t leave joints that are too large between the paving stones to protect them from weeds. If the paving circle does not take up more than half of the area to be paved, you can simply purchase an unsorted stone mix according to square meter requirements. As a rule, there are enough suitably shaped stones to be able to pave a circle yourself.
Lay paving stones in a row of runners
The runner row is similar to the row association, whereby small paving stones are particularly suitable here. They can be alternated with larger ones and thus create interesting laying patterns for terraces and patio areas. A stable edging is required for this type of design. This secures the edges of the pavement against slipping. However, this depends above all on the local conditions, the stress and the size of the covering. For areas with little or no stress, a concrete support, at least 10 cm thick, is sufficient, and then place the row of runners. Concrete curbs are recommended for heavy loads.
Pave garden paths with processed natural stone
You can combine large and small plasters to create a creative row of runners. However, first seek advice from experts as to which sizes and laying patterns are best for your area to be laid. You can lay small garden paths or patios yourself with natural stone paving, but if you have an entire garden, it is best to hire a few craftsmen to do the work. In addition, the load and the use of the surface play an important role in the selection of the type of paving, size and laying pattern. Basically, paving stones of size 8 are suitable for the safe laying of areas that can be driven on at all times, such as driveways. For terraces, garden paths and house entrances, 6 stones are very suitable.
Laying natural stone paving – the segment arch
Paving stones can be laid in many different stone associations. The wall bond and the scaled arch are considered classic. the last one was often relocated to town squares and streets in the 19th and 20th centuries because of its beautiful design function. The arches run parallel and look like real jewelry. With this laying pattern, natural stones in different colors can be laid as natural stone paving. This creates beautiful patterns that are suitable for large, small, classic and even modern gardens.
Laying natural stone paving – combine different laying patterns
In gardens without decoration, an area that is attractively laid with natural stone paving serves as such. Laying patterns can be combined with each other for larger areas and also look playful, but also very stylish. You can lay a large patio with natural stone paving, using a row of runners for the main area and designing the dining area with a circular laying pattern. With such a design, the different areas are noted on the floor. It doesn’t always have to be worked stone. Large boulders or river stones can also be incorporated decoratively into the pavement design.
Lay the garage entrance with natural stone paving
Garage entrances can be laid with natural stone paving, which is a good and permanent decision for this area. If they are laid correctly, the paving stones guarantee a stable surface that cannot be destroyed by a car. As already mentioned, these are available in different sizes. Mosaic plasters have an edge length between three and eight centimeters. Conventional natural stone paving is between eight and eleven cm. These are considered to be large pavements between 13 and 17 centimeters. Pavement from this size is known as stone slabs.
Porphyry paving around the house
Natural stone paving harmonizes perfectly with similar building materials that are used in the garden or in facade design. As an example, we present the combination of natural stones for the facade cladding of the house and porphyry paving as a covering for the driveway.
Lay the outdoor fireplace with natural stone paving
Natural stones in the garden create a pleasant atmosphere in the garden. Design your own backyard with an outdoor fireplace, beautiful water features with a stream and a natural stone pavement with the same shape as the fireplace. Use natural stones in different shapes for this purpose and create your own natural oasis in the garden.
Laying natural stone paving – black basalt stones
If you want to design a dark garden path outdoors, you should choose a suitable type of stone. Basalt stones for paving are a suitable decision in this case, as they occur naturally in black and do not need to be colored.
Combine natural stone pavement in different colors
Another design idea is to design the round natural stone pavement in two matching colors, for example with basalt and porphyry natural stones. Use the darker color for the edge and the lighter color for the inner part to avoid a dramatic effect.
Garden design with granite paving stones
If you prefer the white color for your garden design, we recommend laying granite paving stones. They are the type of stone most commonly found in white.
Laying granite stones around the house
Gray granite cobblestones can be adapted to any exterior. It has a beautiful look that, together with its durability, creates the perfect natural stone pavement for terraces and driveways.
Mosaic paving for garden paths and city squares
In many large cities, city squares with mosaic pavement are laid in interesting shapes. This sea wave association made of black and white natural stones and other pictures made of paving stones beautify some public areas in Lisbon – the capital of Portugal.