Do you dream of having an exotic garden? Do you want to access all areas of your garden without stepping on any of the beautiful vegetation? If you’ve not thought about it yet, I believe that creating a garden path is the way to go.
Choosing the right garden path makes a huge difference to your yard because it serves both a functional and decorative purpose. I have encountered a variety of pathway materials in the gardens I’ve reviewed, so I understand how difficult it can be to choose the right one.
There are so many factors to consider, from the budget and style to the path materials. To help you, I’ve compiled a list of my favorite garden path ideas for fall.
Contents
Use Pumpkins as Lanterns
Prop Them Up
These pumpkin lantern pieces are a great addition to your garden entryway, in my opinion. Not only do they increase the curb appeal of your exterior, but they also improve security by lighting up every corner of your garden, hence deterring intruders.
More importantly, these fixtures are sturdy, enabling them to withstand the outdoor elements. Plus, these are pretty simple to make, even for new DIYers who are still developing their skills.
Place Them Along Your Path
​Illuminate your garden entryway with these cute pumpkin lanterns that can be placed on the ground. These lanterns give you a simple and fairly inexpensive way of brightening your garden path.
Contrary to other garden paths that I think can be somewhat difficult for beginners to install, these pumpkins only need to be lined up along the edge of your entryway. Just turn them on, and you’ve got a gorgeous pathway.
Get Creative With Whole Pumpkins
Line Them Up
One way to embellish your garden pathway is to use pumpkins to add life and color to your outdoor space. You can paint them to create contrast and even line them up with some lanterns. As I see it, you can never go wrong with the dramatic effect this will create.
Looking for ways to bring life to your pathway edges? Have a look at this idea at pinterest.com, the leading image-sharing platform full of creative DIY ideas.
Create Piles Of Pumpkins
​Pumpkins are a staple of the fall season and are perfect for decorating. If you find yourself with dozens of pumpkins lying around, I suggest using them to adorn your garden path by lining them along the edge, like you see in the image above.
What I love about pumpkins is their versatility. You have the freedom to carve them, paint them, or wrap them in patterned ribbons before placing them on the edge of your entryway.
Nestle White Pumpkins Into Your Garden Beds
One of the simplest ways to use white pumpkins as part of your outdoor decor is to incorporate them into your garden beds, just along the edge of your stamped concrete pathway.
By using large and small pumpkins, you can make it seem as if they grew overnight. This gives your garden path a unique but attractive design, in my opinion.
To nail this design, follow the fall decoration tutorial on thespruce.com, a well-known home design blog with some of the most useful tips for DIY projects.
Here are a couple more ideas on how to use pumpkins to decorate.
Make The Most Of Your Mums
Rethink Your Vase
If you’re a fan of mums, you’ll love the idea of placing them in stylish vases to further magnify their beauty. These will draw the attention of anyone who walks into your garden and leaves a lasting memory. I also suggest creating a brick walkway under these vases to act as a stand and help line up your outdoor space.The beauty of decorating with vases is that you can move them at any time. If you decide to go with different walkway ideas, later on, you can use the potted vases indoors.
Create A Vibrant Combo Of Mums
Mixing and matching mums of different colors is another one of the best garden path ideas, in my opinion. Certain color combinations work very well together. For instance, reds, oranges, yellows, and whites complement each other beautifully.
If you have a very big garden entryway and want to make it seem smaller, using such bright colors is the way to go.
To learn more about creating mums arrangements, visit bannerelk.org, the official website of the Banner Elk Tourism Development Agency, that’s full of information about home outdoor activities.
Stay With A Single Shade
​You don’t have to go all out with color. Having made tons of different DIY garden projects, I’ve found that, sometimes, even subtle variations can help you achieve that eye-catching design you’re looking for.
A monochromatic color scheme that I recommend for the fall season is orange. Orange mums are vibrant and bold, denoting playfulness and enthusiasm. You can complement these flowers by lining the edge of your garden path with pumpkins.
That said, you’re free to pick any color other than orange. Just be sure that it’s a bold color that works well on its own – like orange, yellow, or red.
Compare And Contrast
A striking way to make your garden entryway stand out is to contrast flower hues. When bold-colored mums are placed next to dark-colored ones, like purple, they give off a lot of vibrancy, in my opinion.
If you can’t find purple mums, try contrasting the hot hues with lush, leafy greenery. The benefit of using this approach is that you don’t have to look for too many mums. Just look for yellow or orange-colored mums and contrast them with the greenery already present in your garden. Also, make sure to add some pea gravel along with the soil under these, as I believe it makes the mums stand out even more amongst the browns and grays.
Use The Rainbow Of Fall Leaves
Bright Red Leaves On Paving
I believe that one of the best autumn gifts from Mother Nature is the autumn leaves that fall from the trees around us. Sure, they need to be cleared out from time to time. But sometimes, they make the best decorations, especially when they fall on the stepping stones of your walkway ideas or green vegetation around it.
Pair Leaves With Stepping Stones
​Instead of spending a ton of money creating a formal, labor-intensive walking path, I suggest going for this basic approach, which won’t break the bank. Simply lay stepping stones on your path beneath trees with beautiful fall foliage and, when the leaves fall, the stepping stones will blend in nicely with the colored leaves.
You can also use gravel instead of stones. However, the large stepping stones add a more dramatic effect, in my opinion.
Find more about informal stone pathways on flickr.com/bagdadcafe, one of my favorite photostreams on Flickr, an image hosting platform.
Use The Beauty Around You
One of the advantages of decorating in the fall is that you don’t have to go that far to get the necessary materials. In fact, if you already have trees on your property, all you need to do is use the fallen leaves to spruce up your garden path. I truly believe that the best garden paths are the ones that appear naturally from a mix of the surrounding foliage and stepping stones.
This idea particularly works for homeowners living in areas where leaves turn brilliant shades of crimson and yellow.
Add Color To Your Garden With Fall Trees
Go For A Winding Walkway
​There’s something so alluring about incorporating a winding path in your garden. When paired with beautifully-colored fall trees, it makes your garden appear bigger than it really is, in my opinion.
For the best outcome, use fuller plants and trees close to the back of your path and smaller ones in the foreground.
Use Smaller Trees
Many people assume that their gardens are too small to add trees. But the truth is, there are dozens of small and dwarf varieties of trees that you can work with. In fact, you can even grow a few in containers, which are especially great for walkway ideas like the one I found here.
Trees such as apples, crape myrtle, silver birch, and magnolia come in hot hues, and they don’t take up too much of your outdoor space. This makes them perfect for lining along your garden entryway.
Go Big
If you don’t want to go small, the alternative is to surround your garden path with massive trees. Unfortunately, I’ve found that most people are hesitant to get on board this flagstone path idea.
There are a few reasons to plant bigger trees. One, they provide shade. Whether you’re taking a stroll or gardening in the sweltering summer heat, you can rest under the shade of these trees. Secondly, bigger trees give the illusion that your garden is big, even when it’s not.
Check out some fall ideas for decorating with trees on bhg.com, the official blog of the Better Homes & Gardens magazine that’s been around for more than 100 years.
More Decoration Ideas For Your Garden Pathway
Incorporate Tunnels
I think that tunnels add so much charm and functionality to a simple garden, and this is one of my favorite garden path ideas for fall! They encourage us to explore outdoor spaces with childlike wonder. But, more importantly, they protect your plants from the rapidly-dropping temperatures and wind.
Lay Stepping Stones On Grass
​If you feel that adding a traditional sidewalk is going to overwhelm your garden, you can simply use stepping stones and wood chips instead. This allows grass to grow between them and sometimes even over them, giving a rustic vibe, in my opinion.
Learn how to add a stepping stone pathway on blog.mykukun.com, the blog of Kukun, a platform that provides homeowners with property data to assist in tracking the value of their homes.
A Fancy Herringbone Pattern
When anyone mentions herringbone patterns, I immediately think of hardwood flooring. However, I recently visited a friend and his breathtaking herringbone concrete tile pathway convinced me wood shouldn’t have a monopoly on this fancy and decorative design. You can apply it on your tile floors, walls, and backsplashes, too.
Experts from Gardenstone, one of the UK’s leading suppliers of garden landscaping products, explain that you can position the herringbone pattern in two ways:
- 90 degrees from the baseline
- 45 degrees from the baseline
The former gives a more regulated block pattern. According to DIY expert Helaine Clare, you can build a herringbone path from reclaimed handmade floor bricks on your own. She warns that you should stick to bricks of the same size, or your job will be far more challenging!
An Olden Days Brick & Cobblestone Path
If you’re a fan of old-fashioned cobblestone streets, here is an idea of how to recreate that look in your garden! This classic path made from bricks and cobblestone can complement a historic home or add instant age to a more contemporary garden.
Professionals from a family-run company, Gavin Historical Bricks, agree that using salvaged stone and reclaimed bricks is a great way to accent your home, as long as you do it properly. They advise you to ask yourself the following questions:
• How cold are winters in your area? Not all stones handle freezing temperatures well.
• Do you live in a particularly rainy area, or your yard has a sharp incline? If so, opt for a tightly jointed path design.
• Is your path going to face heavy foot traffic? Then, use mortar and gravel to make it more visible and easier to walk on.
I love the old cobblestone walkways and think they ooze beauty and charm. However, I personally hate walking on them as they are usually a tripping hazard, especially if you are in high heels.
A DIY Crushed Pea Gravel Path
Alexandra Bandon from This Old House magazine says all you need to make a budget-friendly walkway in one weekend is some edging, gravel, and elbow grease. In her words, gravel is a traditional path material that requires minimal skill to install. Just dig a few inches deep and you’re almost done.
Of course, in order for the pebbles to stay put, you need an edge too. You can use wooden planks or slates like in the picture or choose one of the edging presented by the landscape experts from the Buckinghamshire Landscape Gardeners:
- Granite setts
- Brick edging
- Block paving
- Path edging curbs
- Timber gravel boards
- Flexible metal edging
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I vote for flexible metal edging because it gives you the freedom to create both straight and curved paths. It is also almost invisible, making your pathway blend in with the rest of the garden.
A Flagstone Path Flowing Through Your Garden
If you have already given your best effort to create a lavish garden full of breathtaking trees, shrubs, and flowers, there is no need to go all out when building a pathway too. Choose a low-maintenance flagstone path like the one in the picture, and all you’ll have to do is give it a good sweep every now and then.
Lee Wallender from Spruce magazine agrees a flagstone path is a worthwhile investment. He lists a few advantages of a natural flagstone, such as:
- An easy-to-walk-on, smooth surface
- Low maintenance (you can sweep or hose off any dirt)
- A range of different colors to choose from (gray, light-green, iron-oxide red, etc.)
My advice is to call the professionals to lay your flagstone. I once helped a friend do it and my back hurt for weeks!
FAQs
What can I use for garden walkways?
For garden walkways, you can use either loose or solid surface materials. Jennifer Ebert from renowned UK’s Homes & Gardens magazine suggests using slate chipping, gravel, wood chips, slabs, tiles, bricks, sets, pavers, decking boards, and natural stone.
What is the easiest walkway to make?
The easiest walkway to make is one made from gravel, dirt, or mulch. As explained by Kate McGregor from House Beautiful, the oldest continuously-published shelter magazine in the United States, all you need to do is pour and rake the material of your choice.
What is the cheapest DIY garden path?
The cheapest DIY garden patch is made from mulch and gravel, as confirmed by Elizabeth Flaherty from the famous Australian Handyman Magazine. She also states that these pathway materials also make construction straightforward. For these reasons, they are highly popular.
What do you think of our garden pathway ideas for fall?
Did you enjoy these garden path ideas? Remember, all these ideas are simple updates that you can execute on a budget, and they’ll still make an incredible difference to your outdoor space.
For some of them, you can even use materials that are readily available, like fallen autumn leaves.
If you found this post informative, I’d highly appreciate it if you shared it with others. You can also share any comments or questions that you have here.
