at the school where i work they had stones at one time and now use mulch instead. we had nothing but a mess there mentioned from leaf droppings and everything.
they now find it a lot easier to look after the perennial beds, shrubs and things without the stones as a top dressing.
there are a number of coloured mulches also that look really nice on the flowerbeds maybe that would be something else to consider because i do agree i think you will have some mess if u want to divide, transplant or move anything. take care, sockiescat.


"Bishoop" wrote in message
...
Up till now we've always covered the ground in the shrub and flower beds
with wood derived mulch.

Now we've decided we like the looks of rocks in place of the old mulch and
are wondering if there any associated problems.

What about fertilizing? Can we just distribute the granular types on top
of
the rocks?
Anything that we should be aware of before we spend the money on the
rocks?

Our home is in Central Florida.

You should consider the cost and hassle of putting down landscape fabric
under the rocks. Then, anytime you want to plant something, you have to
deal with moving the rocks and the fabric. I think stone mulch is a "look"
that comes and goes. It was very popular in the 60s in my area. Natural
mulch is always in style and is better for your plants and easier to work
around when you need to plant something. If stone mulch was really great,
you would see it in all the Central Florida theme parks and high-end
resorts - which you don't. Down the road if you decide to get rid of it,
you will have a big job and a disposal issue.