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Simple yet extraordinarily effective, rockeries are stunning features that suit any garden or outdoor space. If you’re unsure what a rockery is, they are basically a planting area built up with rocks, paving slabs, boulders and gravel that includes ‘softscape’ features such as plants and water.
Whether you go for a natural formation as the basis of your rockery or you choose something a little more polished, you really can’t go wrong. As well as looking visually amazing, they can be great habitats for wildlife and important contributors to your garden’s ecosystem.
It isn’t difficult to put your own rockery together, just follow the simple steps below.
What to put in a rockery – gather your supplies
Before you get started, make sure you have everything you need so you don’t have to do multiple trips to the garden centre or local DIY shop.
- Large ‘anchor’ rocks for the base of the rockery
- Smaller rocks
- Gravel and/or pebbles
- Alpine plants or conifers (or a mixture of both)
- Soil, bark and compost – choose a soil combination that works best for your chosen plants
When choosing your rocks, try to go for ones which are local to the area. This will make the rockery appear more natural.
Plant ideas
Here are some of our favourite plants that look great in a rockery. Practically any alpine plant will work well, so feel free to go for varieties that aren’t on this list. Just remember your plants need to be drought resistant, prefer good drainage and should have compact growth habits[i].
- Thyme – thyme grows low down and spreads well, making it perfect for filling out blank spots and crevices
- Hens-and-chicks – these fun succulents are excellent additions to any rockery. They’re very hardy, so won’t mind being exposed to rougher conditions
- Lithodora diffusa – blooming with delicate blue flowers in the height of the summer, Lithodora grows plenty of dark green foliage which will cover sparse areas of your rockery
- Candytuft – simple but impactful, candytuft is a low-growing plant that blooms an abundance of pure white flowers,
- Trailing bellflower – any trailing plant will look perfect in a rockery, and this is especially tru for the trailing bellflower which produces a lovely star-shaped, purple flower.
When to build your rockery
Your rockery ideally needs to be established before very hot weather arrives. If you can, build it in autumn and plant it up in spring.
If you haven’t had a chance to plan this far ahead, you can plant your rockery at any time of the year. If you’re building it outside of autumn, try to build your rockery a few days after heavy rainfall whilst the soil is moist, soft and easy to move.
How to build a rockery
Step 1: Find an ideal location
As you’re likely to be planting alpine varieties in your rockery, you should pick a location which best fulfils their growing requirements. Look for spots with full light coverage and minimum shade[ii]. As tempting as it may be to tuck your rockery away in a corner for a mysterious effect, your rockery will thrive best as the main event of your garden.
Consider your own view of the rockery too – a carefully placed jack and jill bench or a bistro set would provide a wonderful view of your creation.
Step 2: Draw up a plan
As with most planting ventures in your garden, planning is the key to success. Make sure you draw out what you want the end result to look like, including rock, plant locations, and allow for any pipework needed. If you’re getting someone else to do the hard work for you, make sure your plan includes as much detail as possible.
Step 3: Get the foundations right
To encourage good drainage and give some height to your rockery, lay some bricks and rubble. This should be placed haphazardly and then covered in upturned turf. The upturned turf will prevent your soil from disappearing into the cracks between the foundations and blocking the drainage you are attempting to design.
Once you have firmed down the upturned turf, cover this with about 8 inches of general garden soil. This is where you create the lines and shape of your rockery, so give it some careful thought. How do you want to guide the viewer’s eyes around your planting? Refer back to your plan at this stage.
Step 4: Choose the best rocks
You need to choose your rocks carefully. The colour, shape, size, pattern – all contribute to the overall design of your garden. Choose stones that will sit well with each other. Recommendations for the best rockery stone includes York stone, Cotswold stone, slate stone, and Welsh green stone. Source these carefully, local quarries or landscaping merchants are usually the best places to pick up rockery rocks.
Step 5: Lay your rocks
Following your plan, carefully lay your rocks and make sure they are sturdy. Once arranged, you need to infill the stones with more general garden soil. Then, pack the soil underneath the rock, as well as between the rocks to create the necessary stability.
It may mean you have to loosen and reshape the soil beneath the stone later, which will give room for roots too.
Step 6: Mix up your compost
Now you have the structure of the rockery in place, it is time to make sure you have the compost ready for planting. Your rockery will need soil that is free draining, which means using equal parts of compost and sharp sand or grit. A decent multipurpose compost with a free-draining mix from your garden centre should do the trick.
Once mixed, spread the compost out and level it with a rake as you go. It is essential that you keep this loose and do not compact the mix.
Step 4: Lay out your planting
Now is the time for some fun. You will have bought your alpines, with a variety of height and spread. It is now time to consider where you are going to plant them. You need to give a lot of thought to the growing pattern of each plant, making sure your mature rockery looks as amazing as your newly planted area.
Then, take the plunge. Remove your plants from the pots, loosen their roots to help them establish in the soil, and plant so that they are level with the surface. Firm around the plant, carefully pushing down on the top layer of the soil. Water your finished product well before moving on to the final stage.
Step 6: The finishing touches
The finishing touches will add an air of quality to your rockery and ensure the end product is as good as it can be. Place decorative gravel or grit around the collar of your planting first, then layer the grit across the rest of the area, filling in all the gaps. Make sure to use a dustpan brush to tidy up the grit from the rockery and around the edges of the rockery area. Such details make the neat finish that will give you the most pride when you step back and admire your work.
Rock garden issues
Even though rock gardens are mainly beneficial to your garden habitat, they can have a few issues which you’ll need to keep an eye out for. Most of these are caused by pests which are attracted to the rockery alongside beneficial creatures[iii].
- Birds are known to pull apart rosettes and cushion plants which are common in rockeries
- Soft growing plants and seedlings can easily be damages by slugs and snails
- Ants love well-drained soil, which is a main feature of rockeries. They can become a nuisance.
If you keep your rockery well maintained and keep an eye out for these problems, your rockery will be fine.
Enjoy your rockery
Well established rockeries are not only beautiful but provide a valuable habitat for garden wildlife that really can’t be beaten. Start building your rockery today; a quality, sturdy rockery will last for many years to come without many issues.
References
BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine, 2019. 12 plants for a rock garden. [Online]
Available at: https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/grow-plants/12-plants-for-a-rock-garden/
[Accessed March 2021].
Rachael Funnell, 2016. HOW TO BUILD A ROCKERY. [Online]
Available at: https://www.theenglishgarden.co.uk/expert-advice/gardeners-tips/how-to-build-a-rockery/
[Accessed March 2021].
RHS, n.d. Rock gardening. [Online]
Available at: https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=837
[Accessed March 2021].
Sources
[i] https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/grow-plants/12-plants-for-a-rock-garden/
[ii] https://www.theenglishgarden.co.uk/expert-advice/gardeners-tips/how-to-build-a-rockery/
[iii] https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=837
