Stone and Masonry LandscapingCladding with Natural Stone Enhances the Overall Appeal of Your Landscaping

A walk through most neighbourhoods will likely reveal homes or landscape features with one or more exposed surface that is fundamentally flat and devoid of colour or design.  Quite often, these walls/surfaces will be constructed of poured concrete or cinder blocks and may include:

  • Raised front porches
  • Driveway retaining walls
  • Portions of the foundation
  • Pre-fabricated steps/stoops
  • Stairwells leading to a basement

In some instances, especially with porches, retaining walls, or the foundation, their faces might be pitted or crumbling due to moisture penetration or perhaps a previous paint job or resurfacing work has begun to peel or chip.  Needless to say, such damage, no matter its extent, will detract from the aesthetics/curb appeal of the home.

One option to remove such blight and to reinforce/protect the existing wall as well will be to clad that wall with natural stone masonry.  Cladding is the process of applying one material over another to protect the under-layer from the elements and/or for aesthetic purposes.

Cladding is a rather common technique in natural stone landscaping, and can be done by a homeowner or by a professional landscaping service such as Landcare in Toronto.  The basic resources required to complete such a project include:

  • Materials
    • Mortar
    • Pre-cut stones
    • Wooden stakes
  • Tools
    • Bubble level
    • Rubber mallet
    • Tape measure
    • Mason’s line/string

Although somewhat more intricate than described here, the basic principles of cladding a flat surface via natural stone masonry consist of the following:

  • Prepare the base – clean and level if/as necessary
  • Place wooden stakes at each end of the wall span
  • Secure and level a line/string between the stakes
  • Run line at the height of first layer of stones
  • Spread mortar, lay stones, tap in place with mallet
  • Fill the vertical spaces between stones with mortar
  • Repeat process, moving line up one layer at a time

For the adventurous type, and depending on the height and location of the cladded wall, a nice finishing touch would be to affix natural stone capping along its upper length.  The proper adhesive would be required (instead of mortar) and waterproofing the stone cap should be considered as well.

Homeowners who may be somewhat less confident in their abilities to perform natural stone masonry work, with or without any capping, would be well advised to capitalized on the skills and expertise of the stone landscaping specialists from Landcare.

Natural Stone Masonry Offers Long-Lasting Function and Striking Aesthetics

Of course, stone landscaping is not just restricted to cladding exterior walls.  In fact, it can be a rather prominent and elegant aspect of landscaping in many areas of residential and commercial properties.

Working with a variety of natural stone textures and colours available from many parts of the world, the artisans from Landcare have the experience to design and install the following features and more, providing homeowners with a combination of long-lasting functionality and eye-catching aesthetics:

  • Fire pits
  • Walkways
  • Driveways
  • Entranceways
  • Retaining walls
  • Patios/pool decks
  • Decorative borders
  • Waterfalls/fountains

Looking for professionally-installed natural stone cladding or landscaping services?  Call the masonry specialists form Landcare at 416-410-0320 to book your no-obligation consultation today!