How to Build a Decorative Flower Ring

Fall is the perfect season to plant bulbs for spring. A raised flower ring serves as a focal point for your yard, not to mention the advantage of allowing better soil control and ease of weeding. Part of the fun in building a flower ring is to select what type of stone to use for your ring. Take a visit to your local home center and you will find many attractive varieties to choose from. Personally, I found that cottage stones and manor stones are among the easiest ones to work with. The ring shown on the picture of this article was built with red charcoal cottage stone and the diameter is about 56 inches.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Rake, shovel, appropriate number of cottage stones, gravel, chisel, hammer, protective gear, water, gravel, potting mix, plants.

1. Mark out a level spot on the ground, make sure the soil is compact to ensure minimal settling.

2. Line the ring with stones to create the bottom tier. You may need to use some halved stones to complete your circle. If so, use a chisel and a hammer to cut up the stones.

3. Once the first tier is in, rake the ground, wet it with a hose, and watch for settling of the soil. If you see any low spots on the ring, slip some gravel underneath the stone until all the stones are sitting on level ground.

4. Build the second tier of the ring and center each stone on top of the edge of the stones underneath.

5. Repeat the above steps to build the third tier, centering each stone on top of the edge of the stones on the second layer.

6. 
    

   Fill the center of the ring with potting mix and rake it well. Now you can start filling your bed with bulbs and different plants of your choice. Wet your bed thoroughly after planting.

Tips & Warnings

• A solid first tier is the key to a good foundation of the ring. Use generous amount of gravel to ensure you have a nice solid base for the ring.
• Be sure to put on protective eyewear and gloves prior to cutting up the stones.

[flowershop]

on 2/11/2009 Thanks Its fantastic post, i love this article. check out some info on tons of different cut flower varieties ..http://www.eflowersandplants.com

[Laurie123]

on 10/1/2008 Great article, what a good idea and unique!

[kaseysviewblog]

on 9/23/2008 Excellent article, I like all the extra details.