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Gardening with Stone

enhancing the color of natural river rock

15 years ago

I've purchased Mexican Pebble (Black) - this is a river rock (golf ball size to baseball size) that I intend to put on top of filter fabric laying on top of my plant bed. This stone is a grey when dry but has brilliant color and variation when wet. So, I'm thinking of using some kind of natural stone enhancer/sealer on these rocks. I've tried Behr "Wetlook" sealer which is $20/gallon and coats but also pools and dries cementing the rock to the surface it's laying on while I paint this stuff on. I've tried Miracle - Mira Matte which works really well and seems to penetrate the stone without pooling but is $18/quart. I've just been using a paint brush and brushing one side of a table of rocks, letting this dry and turning them over, then painting on the other side. I'm looking for the right product that works well like Mira Matte, is cheap enough to justify painting on a lot of rocks (I've got to think this will take 5 gallons or more for a ton of rock which should cover 100 sq.ft.), and stands a chance at lasting a reasonable amount of time out in the garden sun. Someone even suggested I try mineral oil - but I haven't tried this yet.

Featured Answer

rockhead515

15 years ago

Have you tried Thompsons Waterseal? Here in NY it runs about $45-$60 for a 5gal. container (summer 07 price). I would also try using a garden sprayer set to as fine a setting as possible. If you make a frame say 24"x24" out of 2"x2" and chicken wire and shake a little as you spray you'll get a very thin, even coat which will dry very quickly without excessive waste. Another option would be to apply the sealer with some sort of roller (or 2 rollers next to each other) or foam pad set up. This would probably reduce waste to zero.

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Comments (6)

petrushka (7b)
11 years ago
all sealers break down and so you'll have to reapply. mineral oil sips INTO the stone and stays there. i'd go for mineral oil. big Q how to apply it. sculptors use it to enhance the stone, like very large stone sculptures. perhaps you can use a mister?
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Monica Foshaug
7 years ago
They make pump misters for fencing oil which make doing large areas easy. Mineral or linseed oil also sounds like it would work well.
Joyce Heinl
3 years ago
I’ve thought about olive oil with water and spray with water bottle
PRO
At Sea Level Custom Construction Cleaning
last year
I did Grout sealer with gloss. So happy with the outcome, great color light sheen..
PRO
RCP Block & Brick
last year
We get this question all the time about sealing or enhancing decorative ground cover rock in order to bring out the vibrant colors and whatnot. While many people do have success, masonry and stone sealers (or whatever you use) will work best on larger profile stone and rock like boulders and flagstones.

When it comes to the smaller ground cover rocks like beach pebble, it becomes a bit tedious to evenly cover all the rock. If you spray the area, you will only be covering one side of the stones. You will find that as time goes on, many stones will be kicked/pushed/swept/generally moved and the un-sealed side will show. Just something to consider if you are trying to cover a large area.

Looking into polished pebbles might be a good route. Although significantly more expensive than unpolished stone, you would be eliminating the need to purchase, apply, and maintain sealers. Polished pebbles are already looking colorful and shiny.

Hope this helps someone out there!

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