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Can You Put Gravel on Uneven Ground? (How To)

Gravel is one of the essential materials for gardeners, landscapers, and construction workers. It’s visually appealing, versatile, and comes in various colors. In addition, it’s affordable, readily available, and easy to install. But, can you put gravel on uneven ground?

You can put gravel on uneven ground but must install it correctly and plan for drainage. Use angular instead of round gravel and choose the right size. You can combine several types, including decomposed granite, crushed rock, pea gravel, and drain rock.

Small rocks on the ground

Gravel makes an excellent choice for uneven ground when you install it correctly. You must install it at 8-12 inches depth and put a proper drainage system in place to avoid washing away by rain.

Choose angular instead of round gravel to form a stable surface and avoid slippage. In addition, choose the right gravel size between 14-20mm to make it easy to walk or drive over it. Choose the right type from decomposed granite, pea gravel, drain rock, or crushed stones.

Decomposed granite is visually appealing and comes in different colors. It’s very fine and firm and yields stable surfaces. Therefore, it makes an excellent choice for driveways. However, it has poor drainage properties.

Pea gravel is small-sized and made from river rock. It’s nice and rounded and comes in various beautiful colors. Therefore, it’s great for patios, gardens, dog runs, or playing grounds. However, it may not be suitable for uneven ground.

Unlike pea gravel, crushed stones are rough and have not been processed. Therefore, it can make an excellent choice for uneven surfaces because it stays in place.

Drain rock has larger particles than crushed stone and has better drainage. In addition, it’s more stable, hence can make an excellent choice for uneven driveways. To increase stability, you can combine more than one type of gravel for uneven surfaces.

Should You Put Gravel on Uneven Ground?

Small rocks on the ground

Although gravel looks great on uneven driveways or pathways, it has various significant drawbacks. The section below identifies various problems you may encounter when using this landscaping approach and how to resolve them.

When putting gravel on uneven ground, you might encounter a lack of a defined edge, poor drainage, gravel sinking on the ground, and weed growth. Install proper drainage and lay a mulch, landscaping fabric, or plastic sheet to prevent weeds and gravel from sinking.

Gravel does not have a properly defined edge; thus, it may fall away from the original design, leaving it looking disorderly. In this case, dig 8-12 inches below the ground and adequately compact the soil. A stabilizer panel or edge restraint also holds gravel in place, preventing it from washing away.

Gravel is heavier than soil, thus can sink due to driving or walking on it. Using a stabilizer fabric that separates gravel from soil can prevent sinking. Likewise, use a weed killer and lay a plastic sheet, mulch, or fabric to prevent weeds from growing over gravel.

Establish a proper drainage system when putting gravel on uneven ground. Water seeps through the gravel and can flood after heavy rains. To mitigate this, install a drainage trench or culvert pipe below the gravel to drain excess water.

What Tools Do You Need to Put Gravel on Uneven Ground?

Confused woman standing

Installing gravel on the uneven ground becomes easy when you have the right tools. Read this section to identify the tools you need to complete this landscaping project.

To install gravel on uneven ground, you need various tools, including a steel rake, weeder, landscaping fabric, gravel grid, spray paint or rope,landscaping border, spade,wheelbarrow, hand tamper, and a garden hose.

You need spray paint or rope to mark the areas you want to install gravel and a spade to dig out the soil. A weeder will help remove weeds or plants growing in the area, while the steel rake will be handy to remove debris, and stones, smooth out the soil and assist in spreading gravel on the landscaping surface.

You will need a gravel grid to prevent gravel from shifting and stabilize the surface. Likewise, the landscaping fabric will prevent the growth of weed and gravel shifting. A hand tamper will help compact the soil and the base layer of gravel before installing the landscaping fabric.

A wheelbarrow will be handy when transporting gravel around the entire area. On the other hand, you will need a garden hose to spray water on the gravel to remove dust and compress the stones into place.

The landscaping border prevents gravel from washing away by wind or rain and makes the area look organized and visually appealing. You can order these tools online or in the nearest departmental store if you don’t have them already.

What Preparations Do You Need to Install Gravel On Uneven Ground?

Confused woman standing

Although it’s easy to install gravel on uneven ground, inadequate preparation can yield unsatisfactory gardens that need regular maintenance due to weed growth or eventual replacement due to the absorption of gravel by the subsurface soil.

You can prepare to install gravel on uneven ground by identifying the landscaping area and choosing the type of gravel. Mark the pathway, dig out the soil, remove weeds, and smooth the surface. Compact it and add a layer of crushed stone. Spread a landscaping fabric and secure it using bricks.

You need to identify the uneven area in your home that you want to landscape and use a rope or spray paint to mark the pathway. Choose the type, size color you want and buy from your nearest construction supplies store or order online.

Prepare the ground by digging the soil, removing weeds or debris, and smoothing the surface. Compact the soil and add a layer of crushed stone to form the base. Lastly, apply the landscaping fabric to stabilize the base and prevent weed growth. The ground is now ready for laying gravel.

How To Install Gravel on Uneven Ground

Confused woman standing

Installing gravel on uneven ground is a straightforward process that requires minimal tools and does not require special skills.

To install gravel on uneven ground, remove debris and smoothen the surface. Pour crushed stone, spread it, and spray water over it. Press the layer and spread a landscaping fabric over it. Install edge barriers and lay a gravel grid. Pour gravel and spread it to complete the process.

Copyright protected content owner: ReadyToDIY.com and was initially posted on September 18, 2022.

Follow the steps below to install gravel on uneven ground.

Step 1: Use spray paint, rope, or garden hose to mark the landscaping area. 

Step 2: Use a flat space to dig soil from the area. Dig 8-12 inches below the ground.

 Step 3: Use a steel rake to smoothen the soil and remove weeds, roots, and debris.

Step 4: Use a hand tamper to compact the soil and stabilize the pathway.

Copyright article owner is ReadyToDiy.com for this article. This post was first published on September 18, 2022.

Step 5: Use a wheelbarrow to pour crushed stones over the compacted soil and a steel rake to spread it. Use a hand tamper to press down the stones to blend with the soil layer.

Step 6: Use a garden hose to spray water over the crushed stones layer to remove dust and further stabilize the pathway. You can use a watering can if you don’t have a garden hose.

Step 7: Spread a landscaping fabric over the crushed stones, spread it, and secure it using hooks to avoid the wind blowing away.

Step 8: Install edge barriers to keep gravel from moving away and clearly define the pathway. You can use bricks, stones, or pieces of wood if you don’t have a barrier.

Step 9: Lay a gravel grid above the landscaping fabric and fill the spaces with gravel. Use a steel rake to spread gravel above it. Continue adding gravel until you reach half of the rim of the soil.

You can install gravel on uneven ground if you put proper drainage in place and dig the correct depth. Use angularly shaped instead of round gravel and combine several types to achieve more stability.

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ReadyToDIY is the owner of this article. This post was published on September 18, 2022.

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