Chattanooga couple spreads 60 tons of rock and mulch to get rid of lawn

The front yard of Dr. L.W. Buddy Nichols and wife, Delores Beery, is filled with white river pebbles, river rock, mountain stone and pavers. Colorful blossoms of crape myrtles, knockout roses, zinnias and petunias pop against the white rock.

Delores Beerys landscaping includes seating areas where guests may stop to enjoy settings such as this birdbath surrounded by hostas, a rambling rose climbing a trellis and fuchsia crape myrtles.

This view from the second-story balcony shows the variety of rock used around the design of the front yards three islands.

Lily pads and a heron-shaped fountain are two elements in the couples backyard pond, where birds love taking baths, Delores Beery says.

Orange and yellow lilies and white petunias are planted beneath a hummingbird feeder.

Delores Beery always had an aversion to mowers, but never more so than when I mowed the end of my second toe off. That accident was the catalyst for a total landscape makeover in which she yanked all the grass out of the front and back yards at her East Ridge home and replaced it with pea gravel, river pebbles, river rock, mountain stone, flagstone and pavers. It is manual labor in which she and husband, Dr. L.W. Buddy Nichols, have invested over four years.

Weve eliminated almost every bit of grass, she says. We dont have a lawn mower and we dont want another. We have one tiny patch of grass on one side of the house where were going to put in a putting/chipping green.

Hes got it all planned that hes going to paint Augustas Amen Corner on the fence behind it, she laughs.

Nichols estimates that the two of them hauled in 60 tons of rock, mulch and topsoil to complete the DIY project. The lawn is white river pebbles mixed with a small amount of pea gravel. Islands of raised flower beds are outlined in stacked rock with flagstone trails winding throughout.

Its a clean, manicured look that the couple says is easy maintenance.

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Chattanooga couple spreads 60 tons of rock and mulch to get rid of lawn