Remove the gravel driveway or cover it with fabric and sow grass?

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

My house has a gravel driveway running from the street to the garage in the back. Its about 130 feet long, and widens to about 15 feet in the rear. We would like to turn the backyard portion of it into lawn, about 425sqft, as we never park in the garage etc...

I've experimented with shoveling the gravel away and there is always more gravel, and in my limited experience, gravel floats in soil.

I've gotten high estimates from landscape companies with no guarantees the gravel won't float.

I'm currently experimenting with a section I've cleared as best I can, and put down some topsoil and planted grass, and it is working OK, but was an incredible amount of labor.

But lately I've been thinking that the thing to do might be to leave a lot of the gravel in place to aid with drainage, and cover it all with a layer of strong landscape fabric, and put my topsoil on that, and plant the new lawn.

The lawn, if healthy, should form a root system that keeps the gravel down - that's what I tell myself. The landscape fabric would give me the time to get the root system healthy and thick.

I feel like I've finally hit on an answer here, and depending on the cost of enough fabric to cover about 400 square feet it may be a LOT less than the landscaper option, and with better drainage.

I would love some thoughts from the community, thanks for taking the time!

Featured Answer

Marie Tulin

8 years ago

Got rid of a driveway that had been gravel for decades to replace it with 'preformed' blocks that look like uniform cobblestones. We needed a bobcat to get rid of the gravel and dirt and level it for further prep.

I don't know your circumstances but a bobcat and a skilled operator are worth every penny. Saves your back, saves many days of labor which wouldn't give you want anyway. If you can't afford it now, I'd wait until you can. Don't see a way to do the job right and have it last without bringing in the right tools. And stay away from landscape fabric. I ignorantly used it in an area to smother weeds. Years later (now) soil accumulated to 6 inches, the fabric shreds poke up in spots but it is so heavy with accumulated stuff it can't be pulled out without ripping. You'll rue the day you used it.

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Comments (7)

Kim in PL (SoCal zone 10/Sunset 24)
8 years ago
Just wait until the gravel "floats" the fabric. Then what a mess you'll have. Is your objective to avoid an incredible amount of labor? Then don't grow grass and leave the gravel. Is your objective to grow a lawn? Hire someone with the right tools -- maybe a backhoe? -- to remove the gravel and do the lawn planting correctly. Just my 2 cents, not a professional.
PKponder TX Z7B
8 years ago
I have no idea if grass will grow in a few inches of topsoil in your climate. I wouldn't try that here, it's much too hot and dry. You might think about cardboard instead of the landscape fabric. At least it would eventually biodegrade and not leave you with a mess to pick out later. How thick is the gravel and does it drain water well?
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The suggestions for removing the grass are good. In my case, I do have such a gravel/rock section in my yard also, but not as big as what you are intending. I ended up having some of the same problems as others mentioned. The previous owners had used landscape fabric, so that eventually tore/wore out and plants started coming through. It is harder to get rid of them than if I could have just hoed down the area. Because the fabric tore, as well as probably not having a stable foundation under the fabric, then over time, I find that I am stepping the rocks down further and further into the ground. I have to replenish rocks in different sections of this landscaping every year. Probably every 6-12 months, I buy what equates to about 120-180 pounds of pebbles/rocks/stones to fill in these bad spots. You would think that that is enough as filler for an area that is already mostly like that, but after pouring all those bags in, I still see areas that could have used another covering or redo. The idea still may work if you would use a different kind of weed block and also have several inches of the gravel cover, but hopefully someone else can chime in on what actually worked for them.
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Yardvaark
8 years ago
I can't help but think that there are going to be grading/drainage issues with heaping topsoil over the existing grade. I would never want a lawn/planting area with a dense layer of gravel below it. Could be a potential mess with unforeseen future plants of yours or someone else's.
littlebug zone 5 Missouri
8 years ago
You MIGHT be able to get grass to grow in topsoil over fabric for a month or two, but as soon as it warmed up (June or July) it would die. Hire a backhoe guy to dig out the gravel, dispose of it, then pour new topsoil on the bare earth.
dschmetterer
Original Author
8 years ago
Thanks for the collective insight.

A few more details:

The driveway is currently about four inches lower than the rest of the basically flat lawn. I would be raising the grade, but not creating a mound compared to the rest of the yard.

Additionally, plants have NO PROBLEM growing in the gravel as is, and 4 inches of topsoil is the least I would want for a lawn, but the gravel is very porous, and is currently supporting a wide variety of lawn grasses, weeds, trees, etc... It isn't as though I'm planting over concrete, for what that's worth.

The real issue with the cost is disposal. Renting and operating a bobcat is no problem, but the question becomes how to dispose of the dirt and gravel. The rest of the driveway will only absorb so much of it. I called waste management (the company, not the municipal department) and they could barely figure out who to point me towards because it isn't "recyclable" material (like driveway asphalt), and could be "contaminated" with what I'm not sure because it hasn't had a car parked on it in several years.

Is broken up dirt/gravel/aggregate something that would be considered "clean fill" and someone would cart away for free from an ad on Craigslist?
mad_gallica (z5 Eastern NY)
8 years ago
Definitely Yes. 'What is usually meant by 'clean fill' is something that can be used to permanently build up land. So any sort of soil or rock is fine. What they don't want is garbage or organic matter that is going to decompose and settle.

Remove the gravel driveway or cover it with fabric and sow grass?

Marie Tulin

Comments (7)

Kim in PL (SoCal zone 10/Sunset 24)

PKponder TX Z7B

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Remove the gravel driveway or cover it with fabric and sow grass?

Marie Tulin

Comments (7)

Kim in PL (SoCal zone 10/Sunset 24)

PKponder TX Z7B

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Yardvaark

littlebug zone 5 Missouri

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Original Author