Alternatives to Pea Gravel in east VA?
I’m planning a project for a relatively small backyard (about 15’ by 45’). The yard is enclosed by wooden fence and house structure. I’m putting in 10’ x 8’ deck agains the house. From where the stair landing of deck is on the lawn to the far back of the yard where a gate is, I want to put in a path. Adjacent to the gate, there is enough room for a child play area and firepit.
The yard does not have a sprinkler irrigation so the lawn quality varies. Also, light is short and intense from noon to 6 PM. Because of the poor light consistency, susceptibility to weeds, and drainage, I was planning to use the same aggregate for the path from the deck to the gate and play/fire pit area.
The path would be about 3’ wide and run along the house foundation to the gate. From there it would transition to a larger area of 10’ x15’. I plan to use flagstone for the path portion.
My question is this: what are the best alternatives to pea gravel?
Pea gravel would be ok for the play area, but my wife is worried about the choking hazard to our young children. I’m worried about it getting kicked in the already hard to maintain lawn an cause an issue with our mower.
I would like something functional and aesthetic for the yard and am not sure pea gravel is the best answer.
I don’t want to pit up with the mud fronm por drainage on the path, so I think some kind off aggregate would be best.