Flagstone & gravel surfaces
Bedding depth, joint width, and base preparation that survives frost heave on a walked surface.
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Natural Stone · Gravel Pathways
Working with stone, the way Canadian gardens ask for it
Notes on laying flagstone paths, dry-stacking retaining walls, reading local stone, and keeping water moving around hardscaping through freeze-thaw seasons.
What this site covers
Four recurring questions in stone landscaping
Most stone projects in a Canadian yard come back to the same handful of decisions: what to walk on, what holds back a slope, what stone suits the site, and where the water goes.
Dry-stack retaining
Batter angle, hearting, and drainage behind a wall built without mortar.
Read the note →Drainage around hardscape
Grading away from structures, gravel beds, and where a French drain earns its keep.
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Latest notes
Field notes, updated as the work changes
Laying a flagstone path
Base depth, jointing choices, and the freeze-thaw details that decide whether a path stays flat.
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Building a dry-stack retaining wall
Setting a footing trench, battering the face, and using the wall itself to manage water.
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Managing drainage around hardscaping
Reading the grade, sizing a gravel bed, and keeping meltwater off paving and footings.
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How a project tends to run
Stone work follows a readable sequence
A typical pathway or wall job moves through the same stages. The pastel markers below mirror that order, from planning the line to the final walkthrough.
Plan line
Survey grade
Source stone
Set & level
Walkthrough
These markers are an editorial device, not a fixed standard; sequencing varies with site and season.
Contact
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Editorial
Linminore is an independent editorial site covering natural-stone landscaping for Canadian conditions.
General enquirieseditor@linminore.org
References used