Gravel, Stone and Soil Delivery in Saint Paul, MN

Long winters and frost heave

The NOAA station at the St. Paul Downtown Airport, about 2 miles from the ZIP, records 146 days a year when the low reaches 32 F or colder. That is a long stretch of cold, and it makes frost heave the main thing to plan around in any outdoor project.^[1]

The median last spring freeze at that station comes on April 24. The median first fall freeze arrives on October 16.^[1]

Frost heave happens when water in the ground freezes into ice lenses that push the surface up. Fine soils that hold water heave the most. Clean, coarse stone that drains freely heaves far less, because there is little water left in it to freeze. That is why a well built base matters more here than the surface stone you choose.^[1]

The downtown station averages 29.2 inches of precipitation a year, and spring melt adds to it. Plan every surface so that water flows off and away, not into the base.^[1]

Spring is the hardest season on a gravel surface. As the top few inches thaw while the ground below stays frozen, meltwater has nowhere to drain and the surface turns soft. Keep heavy trucks off a new drive during that stretch when you can, and wait until the ground firms up before you regrade.^[1]

The ground under the city

The USDA soil survey maps the ZIP's center point as Urban land and counts 100 percent of the map unit as paved or built over. Any digging there is likely to hit fill, old base, brick or debris before natural soil.^[2]

The ground at that point stands 720 feet above sea level.^[3]

On disturbed urban ground, test before you build. Dig a small hole and pour in a bucket of water. If it drains within a short time, the ground underneath moves water well. If it sits, plan for a deeper stone base and a drain line to carry water away.^[2]

A driveway and patio that come through the thaw

Start by digging out soft soil, roots and loose fill until you reach firm ground. Lay a woven fabric over it to keep the stone from mixing with fine soil during wet spring thaws. Then build the base thicker than you would in a warm state. Compact Road Base or 1-1/2" Crushed Gravel in thin lifts, rolling each one until it no longer moves underfoot.^[1],[2]

Top the drive with Driveway Gravel or 3/4" Crushed Stone. Crown the surface so meltwater runs to the edges, and lay a strip of Drain Rock or #57 Crushed Stone along the low side. In spring, as the frost comes out of the ground, a drive with good drainage dries fast and stays firm, while a poorly drained one turns soft and rutted.^[1]

Snow plows and shovels pull loose stone onto the lawn. Set the plow blade a little high and add solid edging along the sides to keep the gravel where it belongs.^[1]

Pavers in a cold city need a deep, free-draining base. Compact several inches of Road Base or 3/4" Crushed Stone over firm subgrade, then screed a thin bed of Concrete Sand or Stone Dust Screenings. Sweep Mason Sand or fine screenings into the joints. Slope the patio away from the house so melting snow does not pool against the foundation.^[1]

For an informal path, Pea Gravel or River Rock is easy to lay and forgiving of frost movement, since loose stone settles back into place each spring.^[1]

Gardens and a short growing season

With the median last freeze in late April and the median first freeze in mid October, the growing season is short. Raised beds filled with Garden Soil warm up faster in spring and drain better than flat ground, which gives plants a head start.^[1]

On urban fill, build beds up rather than digging down. Fill them with Garden Soil or with Topsoil mixed with Compost, and cover the soil with Brown Shredded Mulch or Wood Chips after planting. Mulch insulates roots during cold snaps and holds moisture in summer.^[1],[2]

In fall, before the first freeze, spread a fresh layer of Compost over each bed and cover it with mulch. The compost breaks down over the winter, and the bed is ready to plant in spring with very little work.^[1],[2]

Backfill, play sand and the top layer of a drive

Basements and foundations in a cold city need water kept away from them, most of all while snow melts. When you regrade around a house, build up low spots against the wall with Fill Dirt, packed in thin layers, and finish with Topsoil so grass can root. The finished ground should fall away from the house on every side.^[1],[2]

Behind a retaining wall or along a foundation drain, use clean Drain Rock or #57 Crushed Stone wrapped in fabric. Clean stone lets water reach the drain pipe and holds no moisture that could freeze and push on the wall. Never backfill a wall with fine, wet soil in a place with this many freezing nights.^[1]

Old urban fill can hide brick, cinders and broken concrete. Pull large debris out of the top layers before regrading, since it settles unevenly and leaves dips that collect water and then ice.^[2]

A backyard sandbox or play area takes Playground Sand, which is washed and screened so it stays soft. Set it over a thin layer of Drain Rock with a few drainage holes in the frame, and the sand dries out quickly after rain or spring melt.^[1],[2]

Two stones cover the top of most drives here. Driveway Gravel carries a blend of sizes with some fines, so it packs into a firmer surface that a plow scrapes more cleanly. 3/4" Crushed Stone is cleaner and drains faster, and it stays loose on top, which gives good grip but lets a plow shove it around.^[1]

For a drive that gets plowed all winter, Driveway Gravel and its firmer surface make sense, followed by a rake and a top-up after the frost leaves the ground in spring. For a parking spot that is never plowed, the faster draining 3/4" Crushed Stone is a good fit.^[1]

Pea Gravel is round and rolls underfoot, so leave it to garden paths and play areas rather than a drive on a slope.^[1]

Homes in ZIP 55101 and across St. Paul

The Census Bureau's survey counts 5,836 housing units in ZIP 55101, and 2 percent are detached single-family houses.^[4]

St. Paul as a whole has 133,051 housing units, and 48 percent of them are detached houses.^[4]

The median home in the ZIP was built in 1960, while the median for the whole city is 1952. Owners live in 21 percent of the occupied homes in the ZIP.^[4]