How to Grade Soil for a Gravel Path

Design the width, length and design of your path. Although your budget and creativity are the only real limitations, consider that narrow paths may cause users to feel enclosed and discourage a leisurely pace. Wider paths with flowing bends are soft on the eye and will enhance the beauty of your garden; avoid low spots and steep inclines when setting out the path.

Lay down garden hoses along the edges of your path's design. Mark the contour of the path with spray paint.

Excavate the path to a depth of at least 3 inches. Follow the slope of your yard, as no particular sloping is required. Remove the soil from the area with a wheelbarrow. This provides a pocket for the gravel to sit in the soil.

Remove weeds and treat the path area with weedkiller. Place edging along both edges of the path. Use solid materials, such as wooden boards, plastic or granite. This will keep the soil and gravel from moving and disturbing the gravel path.

Compact the soil along the path with a soil compactor. You can rent one from your local hardware store or make your own with by nailing a flat board of wood to a pole to use for flattening and compacting.

Lay a soil fabric underliner to help stabilize the soil and the sub-base. This will also help maintain the drainage capabilities of the gravel path. Pour a layer of crushed stone with a particle size of three-eighths of an inch to a depth of 2-to-3 inches. This is the sub-base of the path. Rake the crushed stone evenly. Compact the sub-base layer.

Pour a layer of fine gravel on top of the sub-base. Compact the path. Pour a final top-up layer of fine gravel to fill any voids left by the crushed stone and the first course of gravel. Rake the fine gravel to the desired level. Compact again.