River rock and stone you pick by eye
Stone is the one thing worth driving over to look at. Color reads differently wet and dry, and a photograph will not tell you how a pallet of fieldstone is going to sit together.
River rock in a bed
River rock is smooth, rounded and sized in ranges, commonly three quarter inch, one to three inch and larger. Small sizes read as texture, large sizes read as landscape. It never breaks down, so a rock bed does not need redoing every spring the way a mulch bed does.
The trade off is weeds and leaves. Rock does not smother a weed seed the way mulch does, so put fabric under it and expect to blow leaves out of it in November. Around a downspout or in a dry creek it earns its keep and then some.
- Put fabric under it before the first stone lands
- Two to three inches deep is enough
- Great around downspouts, hard by a big oak
Wall stone, flagstone and boulders
Stacked fieldstone builds a low wall without mortar if the courses are set back and the base is right. Flagstone makes a patio or a path you can set on screenings and sweep sand into. Boulders get sold by the piece, and the good ones go first.
Come look before you order. We will tell you honestly what a pallet is going to cover, and it is usually less than people hope, because stone thickness varies and you lose some to breakage and to the cuts.
Want to see it before you buy a ton?
Come to the yard and look at a pallet in daylight. That is what it is there for.
What Gaston County says
Every quote below is a real review, word for word, from our Google profile.
I called this morning looking for prices on some mulch and expected to have to wait a few days for delivery. I spoke with Melissa and she helped me figure out how much I needed and quoted a very reasonable price and told me I could get it delivered in half an hour! Mac was soon in my driveway with a truckload of mulch. He drove that truck right up to my flower bed and dumped it right where I needed it.
I'm born and raised here, so I've known about AJ's for probably the last 30 years or more, but have never worked with them until now. They are awesome to work with. When you call them, you don't get a recording. They answer the phones and provide great insight and advice for the project.
This long established business continues to provide quality products for a reasonable price. The second generation is also involved and he delivers quickly, efficiently and never fails to treat customers respectfully.
Always great, the lady on the phone is always pleasant and soooo friendly, she is patient answering questions and helpful, the delivery guy is always friendly, he even dump my gravel in diff spots to make it easier to spread.
AJ will forever be my place and will always be the first place i recommend. I have begged my husband for years to fill an area in my garden with river rock. He was able to do that yesterday with the help of AJ's!
Great family owned and operated business. Honest, insightful and helpful in every aspect.
Think you have a problem up there? We will look at it, free.
About a ton for every 100 square feet at two inches deep. Rock is denser than mulch, so the tonnage climbs quickly once you go past three inches.
Yes. Without it the rock works down into the soil over a few years and you end up buying it again. Fabric also keeps the bed from turning into a weed nursery.
Individual stones go out on the truck. Where a boulder ends up on the property is a separate question, because once it is off the tailgate it is not moving without equipment.
Bring the measurements of the area, or a photo of it, and we will tell you. If river rock and decorative stone is not what the job wants, we say so and point you at what does.
Monday to Friday 8 AM to 4 PM; Saturday 8 AM to 2 PM; Sunday Closed. Outside those hours use the form and we answer the next working day.
Since 1982.
Tell us the area, we will work out the yards
Call the yard, or send the measurements and the material you had in mind.
- Monday to Friday8 AM to 4 PM
- Saturday8 AM to 2 PM
- SundayClosed