Question
Hello,
I have a narrow strip of soil in my front yard between a small drainage ditch and the main road. It has a lot of gravel, and growing turf is not an option (plus the road is busy so mowing is somewhat of a hazard. I was thinking of excavating the area down a few inches and installing chalet stone. Do you think this would be acceptable aesthetically, and do you have any other ideas for maintaining this area? I plan on doing a large flower bed on the other side of the ditch, so I'd prefer something innocuous. Thanks for your help!

Answer
Hello, Michelle.  I read & re-read your question. What is "chalet stone"?  I googled in and came up with nothing...I'm not familiar with that term, so I cannot comment as to aesthetics. Do you perhaps refer to converting this drainage ditch into a stone channel, instead of a grassy channel?

I think that excavating down and converting this ditch into a shallow, paver-lined planter might work, as long as the original function is not impeded--conveying any storm water somewhere else.  This conversion would be called a "box" or "stone" culvert.

Check out this Scottish link, that may possibly help with your design question:
http://www.snh.org.uk/uplandpathwork/index.shtml

I avoid over-turfing an area just for the reasons you've indicated - excessive or hazardous maintenance.  ~Marc