Field Stones?

wexie

I'm currently doing up my garden and gathering all the stones I can find as I'm thinking of building a few small walls.

I was thinking of popping into a few farms around and asking are there any field stones they need getting rid of (quite happy to pay a bit) as ideally I'd like field stones rather than quarried ones.

Just wondering how all you farmers out there see this, would it be terribly cheeky? Do you use them or just pile them up somewhere? I've a trailer and something to pull it so even boulders would be welcome.

If someone showed up in your yard asking (politely) for some rocks would you chase them out of your yard or would you be glad to be rid of them? I don't want to offend any of my neighbours but I do want to see if I can gather enough stone locally.

Any help and advice much appreciated!

blue5000

You'd be welcome to come 'pick your own'.:D Bit of a long draw from wexford, but if you brought up a load of bales of straw for every load of stones that would be great.

dar31

Any amount of them, free to a good home

Reggie.

blue5000 wrote: »

You'd be welcome to come 'pick your own'.:D Bit of a long draw from wexford, but if you brought up a load of bales of straw for every load of stones that would be great.

You don't ask for much do ya blue

The Letheram

I did this in north wexford for stone for my garden. I am a farmer, just hadn't enough of stone of my own. No problem with farmers they were happy enough to help me out bit as I say I am one of their own. Best of luck with your search.

wexie

blue5000 wrote: »

You'd be welcome to come 'pick your own'.:D Bit of a long draw from wexford, but if you brought up a load of bales of straw for every load of stones that would be great.

Just got rid of 3 trailer loads of grass and such today, nice and dry but may or may not have contained some roundup

That's only about a quarter done, or at least done to the stage I can think about mowing it

Thanks for your responses guys, seems like I won't have to worry too much about annoying people then.

I'm thinking I'd like to use as many local materials to do the garden to make it look as natural as can be, even contemplating growing trees from local seeds (not quite decided will it be worth the effort, I'm thinking it will in the long run). Either way, if I do buy trees they'll all be native trees (to north wexford)

The plan for the garden is to make it look (in a few (a lot ) of years like the garden was always there and someone's just built a house in it.

greysides

wexie wrote: »

The plan for the garden is to make it look (in a few (a lot ) of years like the garden was always there and someone's just built a house in it.

The garden isn't the problem IMO. That will look natural once it's over-grown.

It's the house. It fits in or it doesn't.

Look around at the trees in the local ditches. That'll tell you what suits your soil/location. There are often improved versions at garden centres. They'll look the same most of the year but will flower/fruit better or have some other enhancing feature.

Brown Podzol

wexie wrote: »

Just got rid of 3 trailer loads of grass and such today, nice and dry but may or may not have contained some roundup

That's only about a quarter done, or at least done to the stage I can think about mowing it

Thanks for your responses guys, seems like I won't have to worry too much about annoying people then.

I'm thinking I'd like to use as many local materials to do the garden to make it look as natural as can be, even contemplating growing trees from local seeds (not quite decided will it be worth the effort, I'm thinking it will in the long run). Either way, if I do buy trees they'll all be native trees (to north wexford)

The plan for the garden is to make it look (in a few (a lot ) of years like the garden was always there and someone's just built a house in it.

I agree with using indigenous materials, especially stone. I have seen a limestone wall poorly built in an area where there isn't limestone for 20 miles and it looks completely out of place.

gozunda

wexie wrote: »

....

Thanks for your responses guys, seems like I won't have to worry too much about annoying people then.

I'm thinking I'd like to use as many local materials to do the garden to make it look as natural as can be, even contemplating growing trees from local seeds (not quite decided will it be worth the effort, I'm thinking it will in the long run). Either way, if I do buy trees they'll all be native trees (to north wexford)

The plan for the garden is to make it look (in a few (a lot ) of years like the garden was always there and someone's just built a house in it.

Agree with the use of local materials and plants tbh. The number of times I have driven down a road in the country to be met with a mad riot of splodgy / variegated / purple plants that look they have been dropped in from the Brazilian jungle or somewhere and no way blend in with the landscape around them.

I would certainly look to use local trees and shrubs. Trees / shrubs already naturalised or native can be propagated by means of hard cuttings taken in the spring or autumn. Willow is probably the easiest tree to grow from cuttings but shrubs such as Spindle, dogwood, and wild privet are also fairly easy to propagate.

The good thing about taking cuttings or collecting seeds locally is that the plants are fully acclimatised to your area and won't suffer from a change of soil / weather conditions that may cause plants propagated elsewhere to fail.

I did this with privet that had once upon a time been part of an old garden long abandoned. I took cuttings, propagated them on and produced a fantastic hedge that cost me nothing but more importantly wasn't touched by the severe weather & frost of 2010.

I don't know if it's still in print but a good guide to propagation is "Planting Native Trees and Shrubs" by Kenneth &Gillian Becket.

Best of luck with it.

sandydan

there is a supplier of native seeds down in West Cork around Skibbereen i think who specializes in old native plants trees and veg , were on TV one night a while back , likes to get native seeds as well AFAIK, they grow plants from seeds and sell a percentage of seeds, may be of interest to you.
there is plenty of stone available in Cork too if running scarce we may be able to find some.

The Letheram

Just thinking about this. Research an ag contractor in your area with a stone picker. They will tell you gairly gast where there ate heaps of field stone tipped up.