What is a Planted Path?

Chances are you have seen pictures of a planted path, or even seen one in real life, and never even knew it. Simply put, a planted path is a type of path that has been set into the ground, and which has plants growing around it. For lack of a better term, this is a path that has been "planted" into the ground like...well, a plant.

This type of a path can be a wonderful touch to your garden, and can add just the right element to many different styles of decorative gardens. For example, a planted path would look great in an English, Tuscan, or rustic style of garden. It would only depend on what kind of stones and plants that you used to make it really perfect. In order to determine whether a planted path will work for your situation or not, take a few minutes to answer these questions. Once you are finished, you will know if a planted path is perfect for you.

• What impact do you want? Basically, do you want to create something that looks like it is from an enchanted wood, or something a little more elegant? How many people will be using the pathway on a regular basis? All of these things need to be taken into account when planning your pathway, and even more so when planning a planted path. The reason for this lies largely in the plants that you use, since people will be walking on them.
• How much maintenance do you want to do? Unless you are planning on hiring a professional gardener or land keeper, you will be doing the work yourself to maintain your garden and the pathway that is inside it. With a planted path the maintenance level is raised just a little bit since you will need to keep the plants under control that are planted between the pavers. If you do not, the plants can very quickly take over the entire path and ruin it.
• Have you experimented with the size? Take time to experiment a little with the size, and dimensions of your pathway. While you may not need to actually plant the pavers into the ground while you are experimenting, at the very least lay out all the pavers that you will be using. Try as many different permutations and arrangements as you can think of until you find the one that you like the most.