Patio Designs Made From Loose Material

Create Basic Dimensions

• Stake off the yard area you desire to use for the patio. Define a space at least 10 x 10 feet, but consider expanding the patio to a larger area that is 15 x 30 feet, for example. You can easily install grilling equipment and lawn furniture in the space because you can place flat tiles or stones in sections to form a semi-permanent flooring. These tiles or stones can be pulled up and moved at any time, of course.

Sketch the Overall Design

• Draw the house and patio space. Sketch the backyard and side areas of your home with the patio space. You can preserve the beauty of curbside appeal by using materials that blend with surroundings, such as crushed brick or mulch. By using certain colors of loose materials, whether gray crushed gravel or stark white decorative pebbles, you can create any type of design you desire. Draw any landscaping materials or containers of plants you wish to install too.

Carve out Ground Space

• Prepare the ground area for the materials. Use a garden tiller to loosen soil and rock for preparing the patio foundation. Your goal is to dig down about 10 inches to carve out an area similar to one needed for a concrete pour. As one option, you can install landscaping boards in pressure-treated lumber or cedar to box in the space. Some of the sections can be outlined with boards to form planting pockets or flatbeds of stone for holding a group of container plants.

Secure Perimeters in Place

• Install border areas securely. Use stakes attached every 5 feet or so on the border lumber, so you can drive the perimeter boards of the patio into the ground. Install one section of border at a time because you may run into deeper rocks that prevent a quick installation. Stakes can be nailed onto the interior of perimeter boards and the sections driven into the ground with a sledge hammer. Take time to align corners tightly, so rocks or mulch won't spill into yard areas.

Install Materials and Plants

• Fill spaces with various materials, and add accent landscaping. Outline pockets for holding white pebbles only, mulch only, or black or gray gravels. Add black plastic sheeting, punched with holes over the entire surface, to each section individually. You can set aside certain sections to lay large flat sections of premade concrete stepping stones or brick pavers, which will form a base for lawn chairs or grilling equipment. Areas of annuals or perennials can add color in pocket spaces or borders. Add large concrete containers of green ivy or small evergreen bushes.