Garden steps: opinions wanted please

[Jobo]

Hi,

I am about to have 2-3 garden steps installed in a sloped area - and in a different corner, one step up to a raised seating area. Both areas are an extension of a gravel path and are already gravelled with Cheshire pink (aka Staffordshire pink). The treads will be gravel and the risers will be brick (Staffordshire blue single bullnose).

I want to avoid the gravel shifting about too much, especially for the sloped area. The landscaper has given two option to stop this:

1. carefully and neatly fixing the gravel in a mortar bed
2. using a gravel grid

Which do you think will be more attractive, 1 or 2? and are there any potential problems with either option?

 

[RayCaister]

Use resin bonded gravel.

 

[Ian H]

I saw a video on YouTube where a guy floated off concrete, then added gravel on top and floated it off again.

Then a couple of hours later when it was part cured he rinsed it and brushed it to reveal the gravel. It looked really good, might have even been glow in the dark stuff.

 

[lonner]

You can get the above effect by using concrete,then wash and brush the top couple of mm off