7 Different Ways to Design a Simple Garden Walkway

Dream backyards don’t come together all at once. It takes years of gardening and landscaping to create an oasis right at home. And much like the journey of decorating inside your walls, you usually tackle it in small steps. So while you might have your idea on a professionally-installed patio one day, for now, you can give your yard a little love with a simple DIY garden path.

Here are seven different ways to get it done.

Quite possibly the most simple solution, this one involves laying a small amount of flat pavers or stones in a row, about a step’s distance apart. If you’re laying your path through a lawn, remove the grass underneath where you want each stone to sit (you can “trace” around the stones), and make the earth below each one as level as possible to minimize wobbly rocks.

With a (mostly) level surface, all you need to do is pour loose gravel or pebbles over your entire intended walkway and smooth it out. You can line the border with lumber, plastic edging or paving stones.

There’s a little bit of work involved with creating a brick path that’s level, lined up and doesn’t have any major gaps, but all in all, this one’s a solid solution that would look great in any garden. You can play with patterns and layout, just like with similarly-shaped subway tile. Try herringbone or a crosshatch for interest.

These come together the same way as the brick walkways, but concrete paving stones can be a bit cheaper, overall.

For a really polished look, combine these two easy ideas into one elegant garden path. Start by laying the stepping stones a step’s distance apart along your entire walkway, then fill in the space around them with gravel, all the way to the edge of your path.

Great for an extra-wide path, or to create a pseudo-patio. Take the stepping stone idea and multiply it to get a path that is laid out like floor tile, with dirt, gravel or moss growing in-between. Or do the same with naturally-shaped stones by laying them into a tight mosaic.

Lay wood planks out in a row, like you’re creating a treehouse bridge, only this time, on solid (level) ground. Fill in around the edges with gravel or mulch. If you’re more “BIY” (buy it yourself) than DIY, you can purchase a pre-fab walkway made out of sturdy, finished wood planks, too.