How to design a drought-tolerant gravel garden that looks lush year-round
Crushed rock helps connect different areas of the yard into a cohesive, calm design that's also low-maintenance.
One of landscape designer Margie Grace's favorite materials is so humble it hardly gets a second thought: gravel. "I love gravel," she says. "It's timeless and earthy, and it lets the soil breathe beneath it." At her Montecito, California, ranch house with partner Dawn Close, gravel is the foundation of their yard design. By combining the material with airy grasses and perennials, Grace has designed a soft-looking, drought-tolerant space that's also easygoing. "I really wanted to tackle water usage," Grace says. While her area receives minimal rainfall most of the year, drought conditions can happen anywhere in the country. "I wanted a lush aesthetic with super-low water use."
When Grace moved in, the backyard was dominated by drought-affected grass. She turned it into a space with different garden rooms. Now, gravel paths and barefoot-friendly concrete pavers wind through mature oak trees, gently waving grasses, and structured succulents, leading to distinct seating and dining areas. A stone patio encircles the house to keep gravel from being tracked indoors.
Grace intentionally uses fewer plants—"a way to conserve water," she notes. Yet, she deeply values the unique beauty of each one, such as the golden grasses. "Around 5 p.m., a beam of light comes through the seed heads, and it's magic," she notes. "It lasts seven minutes, but it's worth planning your day around."
 Credit: Holly Lepere Credit: Holly Lepere |  Credit: Holly Lepere Credit: Holly Lepere |  Credit: Holly Lepere Credit: Holly Lepere |
The majority of Grace's garden relies on foliage, but she plants a handful of water-wise flowers for color. She especially likes bright orange California poppies, which reseed themselves each year, mixed with fern leaf lavender. (Get a similar look with other garden poppies suited to your growing zone.)
The Dirt on Gravel
Gravel is a versatile element that suits a wide variety of garden styles: sleekly contemporary, casual and friendly, or Versailles-level formal. The material visually connects different areas in the yard and serves as soothing negative space. Practically, it can be used for a driveway, a walkway, or as mulch, planted (as Grace does) with unthirsty grasses. It's flexible, not particularly expensive, and less permanent than concrete.
1. Choose Harmonious Colors
Gravel comes in a range of colors, including tawny browns and cool grays. When choosing gravel, Grace brings all the materials she plans to use to make sure the colors harmonize. "I get a chunk of the paving stone I'm going to use into the back of the car," she says. She recommends crushed gravel for driveways but larger rocks, at least 3/8 inch, for areas that will have leaves blown off them.
2. Install Securely
Grace uses gravel directly on soil, although gardeners in rainier regions should use a base layer of landscape cloth to keep the gravel out of the mud. Prepare the soil by leveling and firming it. A 1/2- to 1-inch-thick layer of gravel is plenty. If you can make distinct footprints, it's too deep. Where people will walk in bare feet, use smooth concrete or stone pavers.
3. Maintain the Surface
Although it's an effective mulch, weeds can still take root in gravel. About once a month, Grace uses a stirrup hoe to dispense with them while they're young—before they go to seed. Occasional raking keeps gravel looking neat, and leaf-blowing a few times a season clears fallen leaves. Every few years, replenish spots that look thin and get a lot of traffic.
