4 Simple Steps to a Dry Creek Bed

Have you ever considered installing a dry creek bed in your yard? It’s not as hard as you might think. With some help from Asphalt Materials, and 4 simple steps, you can add a beautiful accent to your yard that will look great for years to come.

Advantages of a Dry Stream

A lot of us love the visual appeal of a stream cutting through the yard, but we can’t be bothered with piping water through all the time. With a dry stream bed you can achieve the same look, without the maintenance and inconvenience of installing pipes and fountains.

A dry stream can add dimensions to your yard and serve to accent other features, like a flower bed or a tree. By creating a sense of motion simply with the undulating line cutting through your yard, you can have a sense of flow and balance to your yard that’s hard to duplicate any other way.

Furthermore, when it’s made correctly, a dry stream in your yard can help to preserve the existing landscaping work by guarding against erosion and creating a productive way for water to drain from your yard. It can prevent problems with minor flooding when storms blow in for the season. The extra stones will also keep your soil in place. Placed under the downspout of your storm drain, you can turn an area that is usually an eyesore into a charming and functional space.

Step by Step

1. Dig a trench. Make it windy and natural. Try to make it suit the natural contours of your yard, and even the natural flow of water in your yard. Maybe next time you’re watering your lawn, or there’s a lot of rain, take note of how water naturally drains.
2. Line the trench with large rocks and boulders. They can be hard to move, so get a friend or special tools if you need them. Make sure that you have them turned to their prettiest side. Don’t lay them out too uniformly. Instead switch up the size and placement to give it a more natural look.
3. Put down some weed cloth to keep unwelcome plants from taking root in your natural creek bed. This will also help with drainage and set a more permanent structure to what you’re trying to build.
4. Pour in some river stones. You want a variety of sizes, but all conforming to a similar color scheme. Talk to us about our great options for stones, rock, and gravel.
5. (Extra) If you want dry creek bed to feed from your storm drain’s downspout, set up a feature zone under the spout. Add some larger rocks that spread out but gradually feed into the creek.