I have pea gravel in a path through my veggie garden and it has worked well. I have the black plastic edging to keep it in place with liriope (sp) grass as a border covering the black edging.

We used crushed limestone for a path a few years ago. It packs nicely and stays put. The crush is pretty fine...1/4'' maximum down to a granulated type dust.

We have crushed shells for the paths at our community garden. They don't get into the raised beds too badly. Definitely lots of weeds which come out easily when the ground is wet but are extremely difficult to get out when it is dry. The main problem is the sun, it always feels 10 degrees hotter than anywhere else and you burn super fast.

Personally, my biggest concern is the PH factor. Where I live I am already on fairly alkaline soil, so adding something like crushed shell paths would just make things that much harder for getting PH right for some of my acid loving plants (blueberries). But, if you have your paths separated from your beds by a fairly deep, wood barrier, like those landscape timbers set at least 4" into the ground, you can help mitigate how much the paths affect the beds.

My second concern is mess. I have one path in my yard that wraps from my lanai door to my shed. Last year I decided to cover that path with pine straw. And it looked great! But as the pine straw started breaking down, I found that it would cling to my sandals more and more each morning, afternoon and evening when I took the dogs out. Especially if it rained. Now a year later, I no longer have a covering for my path. What pine straw I did not track inside and then sweep up and throw on my compost decayed to feed the now bare paths. I do not know how much of a mess the crushed shells make, but if your local mulch/gravel supplier has a mound of them, I would give them the 'heel test'. Go out to visit them shortly after it rains and put the heel of your sandals, shoes or boots into the pile and see how much clings to the bottom. Take that amount and double it and then imagine taking that much into your house or beds with you every time you go out on a misty morning.

And one final note: Local doesn't always mean good. Sand is a good local product as well, but when you look through Google maps around Tampa and other places where sand is collected, you can see just how much it is messing up the local environment to gather these local materials. This is not a HUGE deal for me personally, but it is something I keep in mind. But if this sort of thing does bother you, then getting this 'locally available' material might not be the best option. It's almost like cypress mulch and peat moss. Yeah, they're locally available, but their harvesting is completely unsustainable and robbing the public lands of their appeal. Again, I'm not waving a hippie flag here about saving the land, but it is a reality to keep in mind.

In the end, nobody should keep you from doing what you really want to do. If you have been pining for a crushed shell path for years now, give it a go. Take all things into consideration, so you can ensure the stuff stays where you put it as much as possible, and then create a small section with the crushed shell and see how it goes. If you still like it a year later, go full out and do all your paths.

Best of luck on your choice.

We have them as well & it's not that bad - but ours are in partial shade. I love the 'Florida' look - & the historic Vinoy hotel had them as paths in their garden, last time I was there & took the tour.

Our elementary school (Gulf Beaches) had the entire schoolyard covered in shell - worst thing about it was if you fell while playing - still have a scar on my knee from that!

As a Floridian, I LOVE that look of crushed shell paths. However: We lived on a shell road when I was a kid, you talk about OWEEE! And, we now have a rural crushed lime-rock driveway and the weeds get in there and it is a constant battle. If you let them go they degrade the material and then you will have wasted your money and efforts. So take warning. Also the soil PH is a factor with some plants, it will leach out and when you have alkaline soil the nutrients have a hard time working. BTW, the Florimulch that they sell at Lowes is very good, it's the cheapest one, it compacts very well, doesn't float away as bad, it's softer than cypress and large pine nuggets, and they harvest it in South Florida, it's an invasive species that needs to be irradicated anyway, so it's not harming the environment.

Thanks so much for the information, ideas, and experiences.

I didn't consider the sunburn factor--or what they might do to my knees if I fall!

Can those of you have these type paths (shell, pea gravel, crushed limestone, etc) tell me how you keep them clean? Will the leaf blower do the trick or does it involve a lot of careful raking--as I have been warned? I have some deciduous trees and will probably plant more, so it's a major concern.

Leekle2ManE, you raise a good point. I don't know if local crushed shell is collected responsibly or not. I'll look into it. My reasons for wanting a local product have more to do with local feel/color than environmental reasons, but I don't want to use anything flat-out bad for the environment either.

The more people tell me, the more I realized that I will need more shade if I do this--maybe a pergola with vines in the vegetable garden--something to put more green overhead when there is white underfoot.

Thanks again.

Bill

Ritaweeda,

I use the Florimulch from lowes and I love it. In fact, if I don't go with crushed shells I will probably just use a lot more Florimulch. I realize it would be more practical in some ways, but the shells always tempt me.

I do wonder how much weeding the crushed shells would involve. I have a small patch of coarse gravel where water pours off the roof during the rains and I pluck a weed or two out of that pretty often, despite landscape fabric beneath. If that's an indication, a few hundred feet of crushed shell paths might be overwhelming to maintain.

Thanks,

Bill

I don't like the landscape fabric because debris breaks down and becomes trapped soil that the weeds grow in. I have pretty thick layers of pea gravel. I use round up for any weeds that show up. Using a leaf blower not pointed down blows off most leaves without disturbing the gravel too much. It does get ruts and I intend to put stepping stones as well in the path.

Off topic but tell me about Florimulch. I like the idea of using melaleuca but does it last longer than cypress mulch? I've been converting to pine bark simply because cypress mulch has to be replaced so frequently.

Tom

All of my paths are left from an old driveway that I planted in..it's pea gravel and I like it a lot. Easy to use a blower on, dooesn't track anywhere, a few weeds from time to time and useful to pick up a few pieces to hurl at the grackles on the feeders!
You could look at some of the pics I've posted if you want to see "the look"
And in the back of my house, I have simple paths with pine needles I rake up off my long driveway - free!
Good luck,
Hester

I've not had much of a weed problem in our one compacted crushed limestone (shady) path. And, not concerned with the ph because we have acid soil and have to add lime anyway. In any case, it is going to take shells or crushed lime a long, long, long time to break down & have much of an impact on soil ph.

How I deal with weeds in other paths (pine needles) is to broadcast Preen...Preen is supposed to be good for about 3 months & I have a short growing season up here in Wisconsin...anything that gets passed the Preen is either hand pulled or hit with Round-Up.

All I can tell you is, if you are a picky person and don't like weeds, don't go there with the crushed shell, you will be driving yourself crazy with the weeds. I live in a rural area where no-one cares what your place looks like so I don't get anal about it, but I do what I can and then learn to look the other way when they grow back, and as long and wide as our driveway is, it would be IMPOSSIBLE to mechanically rid it of weeds, I use roundup and then a month later I have to do it again. And forget the grassy weeds like sedge, roundup doesn't touch it.

Yes, I love the Florimulch, I like it better than any of the others and it seems to last just as long or longer than the others. And it's CHEAPER! Also, yes, I've started using Preen in the beds and it really keeps the weeds down, but when it rains a lot you do have to re-do it sooner than every 3 months. But it doesn't work on sedge grass, does anyone out there know what works on that? I have hit it several times with roundup and sedge killer and I just can't get it under control.

I work on Sanibel and everyone uses either washed shell or 79 rock. It is very old Florida look. When I first started at the nursery I thought it would be a nightmare but it is easy to keep nice. A blower or rake will clean up the leaves or flowers easily. I don't find it has more weeds than areas with mulch but we keep on it. I think that is the clue, if you see a weed pop up pull it right then. We keep it pretty thick and it is very neat. Rock in the areas you drive on and shell on the paths. We don't use anything to keep it in place other than mulch.

Katkin, thanks for the tip on the leaf blower. My fear is that if I don't use some kind of weed fabric my "soil" is so sandy it would swallow up any shells or gravel I put on it. I was hoping if I used a mix designed to pack down and form a hard surface it would prevent this from happening even if I didn't use the fabric, but I don't know.

Hester, I did a search and looked up photographs of your gravels paths. Very pretty! I love the look. It's what keeps drawing me back to the idea. Thanks for telling me about your experience with them.

Ritaweeda, I could use Roundup or Preen in the some areas, but I could see it getting a bit tricky in the narrower paths of the vegetable garden--where I really want these paths. I wonder, Could you reduce the weed problem by topping off with more shell now and then? I haven't figured out a way to kill sedges either.

Keiki, without barriers don't the shells/rock and the mulch get mixed up? Now that you mention it, I see driveways around here made of white or off- white rock (I'm not sure what it is) that don't seem to have barriers either. I'm wondering, How do you keep the edges neat? I'm going to investigate 79 rock.

Thanks again to you all.

Bill

A good, economic way to apply glyphosate, aka Round-up, is to paint it on plants you want gone. When spraying, you always run the risk of overspray or the wind blowing it onto something you want to keep. But using a small sponge or cloth, you can wipe the leaves with the chemical. It takes a tad more effort than point and spray, but it is well worth it for the safety.

I use 3 sides of a card board box as a shield around the weed and spray. I think that goes a little quicker. :o)

I have the cheap 12" pavers from HD and love them, I push and pull my cart or wagon and no problem, doesn't bog down... we set them in an alternate red-white pattern that looks good...sally

Hi Bill

I saw this bed at Disney and I thought it was very pretty! but probably is good in a raised bed not in a path where if you walking barefoot, you can get hurt. I like hay in some of my garden because it is easy for my little dogs paws.

Silvia

Thanks for the picture, Silvia. It's a neat idea. If in the end I don't go with crushed shell paths maybe I can make a bed of whole shells somewhere.

Sally, I have been considering the paver idea too, as an alternative to shells/gravel, for the reasons you mention, and lots of others too. They're probably more practical in the vegetable garden. I had not considered using two different colors in a checkerboard pattern. I'm going to think about that. Thanks for the idea.

I've used a paintbrush to apply glyphosate but I never thought about the cardboard box idea. I'm going to try it next time I have to use it.

Bill

I like the pavers because after awhile they get that 'old' look and where they don't fit I fill in with bricks, the bricks look rustic and go well together with the pavers... I push and haul my cart and barrow and no problem ,they don't bog down.... and weeds don't grow, except between the pavers and I spritz them w/round-up, but have to be careful none drifts on the roses it is lethal.. LOL.. sally

It will effect the Ph of the soil. In some places that is not a problem, hell the state of Florida sits on limestone. Although the soils tend to be acidic. If you choose the right plants you should be alright there. Not fun on bare feet. Also someone mentioned about using cypress much expressing concern about using the trees for that purpose. Most of the cypress much is waste from the harvesting and milling of lumber. Cypress is a great resource, fine wood. If done correctly there should be minimal harm to the environment. think of all the jobs. The guys cutting the trees, the mill, truckers. Landscapers, restaurants clothing, etc..So use these products

Yes, Cypress mulch is a by-product of the Cypress lumber industry, but one thing most Floridians are somewhat aware of is that every year Industry is in our State congress pushing to have more State Park and Restoration land rezoned so they can keep up with their cypress production. Why? Because unlike Pine production, Cypress is not sustainable. It takes far longer for Cypress to reach harvesting size than it does for pine. A mature Bald Cypress is at least 50 ft tall. Even at it's fastest growth rate, that is 25 years to grow a replacement. They also require certain conditions to thrive and grow at that rate, conditions that disappear every time Industry moves into one of these rezoned locations and clears it. Other harvested lumber trees, like pine, grow faster and aren't as picky about where they grow. So if Cypress harvesting was done properly, it might not be destroying our Glades and other areas, but it would be harvested more slowly and the costs of Cypress would go up, so instead of doing it properly, Industry pushes to allow it to be harvested improperly. Every time a Pine 'Forest' is harvested for its lumber, it is replanted with Pine. Most times when Cypress is harvested, the surrounding land is filled, leveled and turned into one more Subdivision.

I had them in the beds at my old house when I moved there. They had pretty much worked their way down into the soil, but they did sort of keep the slugs and grubs at bay. I didn't like the look, so I ended up covering them with mulch.

there should be minimal harm to the environment.

Hmph. Ever been on back roads in SW Fl after midnight? The number of illegal logging trucks sneaking around is pretty remarkable. I really don't see how you can say that. Cypress logging is plenty harmful to the environment and a fairly high proportion is completely unpermitted.

Heh, me not being a real Floridian, my comments are always going to be second-tier...but that said, my favorite home/garden on my walking route when down in Fort Myers has a wonderful yard with shell paths. They look perfect to me! I'd be doing that if.....blah blah.

As to the sereptitious harvesting of forest products in Florida, I can tell you with certainty that a great deal of land clearing-not logging-but the wholesale conversion of land from forest into shopping mall, walmart, condo complex, first involves the stripping off and piling up of all trees, followed by chipping straight into vans (semi trailers) for bagging and selling. Up here in the north, nearly every gas station/C-store features pallets full of bagged cypress mulch all growing season long. Sad business, I wish I could even approach believing that all this material is simply lumber mill byproducts. It clearly is not.

Then too, while species like the slash pine (Pinus elliota) do indeed grow extremely fast down in Florida, almost all of this material is also coming from land clearing-not logging operations. It is said that the pine flatwoods-once far and away the most common native plant community in Florida-is being cleared and converted into development at so alarming a rate that this will soon become the rarest forest type. That's a sad deal, as these are forests of rare beauty, not to mention their being homes for a wide array of wildlife.

Now the Florimulch is-to the best of my ability to ascertain-a truly ecologically friendly material, being produced from Malaleuca. BTW, that species is nearly extirpated in its Australian homeland!

I am sure a fair number of pine mulches/lumber are grom land clearing. My point, as I am sure you figured, is that when it comes to responsible harvesting, pine is a much better choice than cypress.
As far as Florimulch goes, it isn't just environmentally friendly, it is environmentally beneficial. The melaleuca tree is a nuisance tree in the Glades, planted to help dry up sections of the Glades and then escaped the 'control' of developers, who I am sure aren't too worried about the damage it does. "Oh hey, look at this area that has been disturbed by the melaleuca trees. Can we build here? The damage has already been done, might as well profit from it, right?"
I had better stop there before I start sounding like an eco-hippy. Or am I already too late?

A certain amount of pine mulch actually comes from the bark that is stripped when commercially grown slash pines are turned into paper or lumber, too. I would suspect that of commercially bagged pine bark mulch, that may even be the largest percentage.

No worries bud-the minute you land there is the minute you're on my wavelength! Not at all sure how intelligent people of yesteryear ever got such a bad name. What was right and true in 1967 is still right and true, methinks! And the average "consumer" would never catch so much as a glimpse of the way in which yesteryear's "hippy stuff" has been co-opted and repurposed into every-day consumer products. It's so diffuse as to be invisible to most folks, but it's right there in front of our eyes.....and ears.

OP and some others in this thread have wondered about landscape fabrics. While there are legitimate uses for this stuff, such as underlying pavers, covering drain tiles, backing up retention walls, I just don't care for it in any of its guises. Wherever and whenever possible,
I prefer to not use the stuff. And certainly it is not necessary under a shell path, where the path material is so similar already to the "soil" that any intermixing is of little to no consequence, at least in my world. Another few fresh wheelbarrows full would serve to dress up as needed periodically.

In my heart and mind, I put no negative connotation on the term eco-hippy. Lots of good things have come from those folks. I am immensely interested the permaculture ideas they are pioneering. I am just not that type. Despite my 'vocal' opposition and negative views of blatant, irresponsible development, I am, at the very center of all my philosophies, a realist. I know I am not going to stop someone from doing something they are bent on doing, despite how detrimental it might be, but that doesn't mean I sit idly by when I see someone pass on misinformation that does little more than further the destructive practices of development.

To be clear, as a long-time interested party to the forest products industry, there are indeed legitimate, ethical means by which all these various products come into being. That said, the land-clearing that's going on in and around Fort Myers/Naples is astonishing and depressing to see for me. I did observe one bumper sticker that did bring a brief moment of mirth to my braincase though. It said simply: "Leaving Florida? Take a Developer With You!" The realist in me knows that no amount of cute sloganeering is going to change one simple fact: Evidently, every day, one thousand people move to Florida. That there's a mega-trend folks. And were it not for my heat and humidity-hating wife, I may well be among that group!

Im in Fl and have crushed shells and cant keep up with the weeds naturally for the life of me. Espessially in rainy season. I pay lawn people who refuse to deal with it. If you dont have pets and arent opposed to chemical weed killer then yeah. Otherwise dont do it.

I have shells as mulch under several shrubs with fabric under them. I dislike it very much as my irrigation well water has stained the shells yellow. Plus dirt has mixed in so they are dirty and black.
I’m trying to slowly get rid of them. I’ve bagged them and so far don’t know where to take them. They are unsightly.