For those about to rock

Saturday 18 August 2012

For Zen priests in Japan, stone and sand or gravel traditionally had a much bigger role than plants.

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Dave Allan

The gardens were often fairly small and designed to be viewed and contemplated from a nearby monastery. The sand represented water, especially the oceans, and the subtly arranged stones stood for islands.

Perhaps the most famous of all these Japanese dry gardens is Ryoan-ji – the Temple of the Peaceful Dragon. Created in the 15th century, the seemingly simple garden consists of 15 rocks in a rectangle of raked white gravel. Nobody fully understands the symbolic importance of the layout, but it was designed to encourage spiritual meditation.

Western gardens do a similar kind of job. After a day's work, what can beat unwinding in the sanctuary of the garden? The backdrop for favourite plants is a vital part of the arrangement – it should harmonise with their balance, shape and size.When deciding what materials to use for steps, paths, outbuildings, shelters or pond edgings, stone is always my first choice, especially as I live in an old stone-built farmhouse. I'm no professional, but I've always enjoyed working with stone. As well as making benches and steps, I've edged the flower and veg beds in the front garden with stone.Lacking the expertise of a dyker, I've concealed my inadequacy by applying the odd lick of cement. Walls and steps secured like this are quick and easy to put up, but a dry-stane dyke will last for centuries. Dyking enthusiast F Rainsford-Hannay noted this 50 years ago: "When some genius, of perhaps later Neolithic times, discovered the virtues of mortar, the ancient builders must have jumped for joy. But it is interesting that their prehistoric erections built 'dry' have outlasted later erections where mortar was used."Fortunately, there are several trained dykers in Scotland who take on commissions to build dykes, seats, retaining walls and attractive semi-circular raised beds, and are registered with the Dry Stone Walling Association. Although one design – a heart-shaped structure enclosing a cosy pair of seats – is nauseatingly twee, most of the others are tasteful and will add character to your garden. Their soft, circular sides, reminiscent of a traditional sheep fank, provide shelter and a good vantage point for gardeners.As well as building these structures, Neil Moffat, who works throughout Scotland, has taken on some more unusual commissions. He'll give you a barbecue with a difference, lay on a wishing well or transform a dull wood store into a tasteful stone-clad edifice. Moffat describes a recent job close to the impressive St Abbs Head: "One of the most interesting and exciting projects was at a house sitting along the cliff tops. It involved facing up the banks of a burn for flood prevention, building an arch which overlooked the sea, and building pillars and steps."The choice of stone for this work is important. Dykers like Moffat use local stone, often collected from nearby farms. This weathered material is already crammed with living organisms. In no time at all, moss and lichens will make a stone edifice look as if it's existed for 100 years. Small, earth-filled pockets can be inserted to give plants a quick start. Given time, sedums and saxifrage will blanket the coping stones, with the epiphytic polypody fern on the shady side. The crevices soon provide shelter for tiny creatures like beetles and lizards if you're lucky.Let's be honest, though. My dyke has also attracted less welcome residents, like the dreaded bindweed, and hungry voles set on nibbling the fresh buds of a precious clematis. Even so, I wouldn't be without it. This natural, almost living stone is invaluable, but not all stone carries these environmental credentials. Another dyker, Nigel Bialy, tells me the great advantage of using farm stone is that it is already partly weathered, while blasted stone from a quarry is more uniform and bland, and will take years to settle and mature.Stone for garden paths can be much more environmentally damaging. I find it shocking that the sandstone sold for paths in the UK has often been imported from India. The product is ridiculously cheap – partly because it's been quarried by families who live and work in terrible conditions. Rebecca Matthews Joyce of the Royal Horticultural Society says: "A garden full of concrete, Indian sandstone and slate planters from China is only achievable at great cost to the environment. Try to source your stone locally. Being sustainable takes more effort – you need to think ahead – but there's plenty of material out there waiting to be reused." nVisit www.dswa.org.uk, www.nmdrystonework.co.uk and www.drystonedesigns.co.uk.Visit www.askorganic.co.uk. Email your gardening queries to da@askorganic.co.uk

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