Path to success
Don’t let well-worn routes in your garden turn into a mud bath – a new path is easier to lay than you think
When the weather is bad and the ground beneath your feet is as soggy as your morning Weetabix, you will quickly discover the most well-traversed routes in your garden. In summer they are less noticeable, as grass grows rapidly even when you walk over it with increasing regularity, but in winter, with grass growth at a standstill, it is not long before the green turns to mud.
Now it is no earthly good telling yourself that you will not walk that way for a while, since it is human nature to take the shortest route from A to B. No, what you need to do over the next few weeks is to make sure that the most frequently used pathways through your garden are as all-weather friendly as they can be.
If you always walk across the lawn in the same place, sink stepping stones into the grass. It’s an easy thing to do.
On a day when the lawn is not squelchy, lay your slabs out in a pleasing but practical pattern from the place where you will set off to the place where you will arrive. Arrange them so that they suit the length of your natural stride – you do not want to be doing an impersonation of a regimental sergeant major legging it across the parade ground on a daily basis, so position them where they hit your footfall in a relaxed and easy walk.
Square or rectangular slabs can be laid in a symmetrical arc if the path is to be curved, or else staggered and evenly spaced so that their edges are parallel to each other. Crazy paving should be laid so that your foot lands on the centre of each slab where your weight will be evenly distributed.
When you are happy with the
Go around each slab with a halfmoon iron or a spade to cut into turf
positioning of the slabs you can set about cutting them into the turf. Go around each with a half-moon iron or a spade, or else use an old kitchen knife to cut down into the turf to the depth of the slab. Dig out each patch of turf and slot each slab into position so that it sits fractionally below the lawn level. This allows the mower to pass with no blades hitting stone.
Have a bucket of sharp sand handy to bed the slabs into position and stop them wobbling. Once the job is done you will have an instant all-weather pathway that will replace that nasty muddy trench you thought would be there for ever.