Crushed Stone, Soil and Mulch Delivery in Roanoke, VA

Paved Ground and Old Fill

Urban land is the name the USDA soil survey gives the center point of ZIP 24011, and the survey counts 80 percent of that map unit as paved or built over. Under a label like that, a spade can hit old brick, cinders, broken concrete or clean clay fill, so a test hole dug before you order base stone tells you more than any map can. Dig it where the new work will go, a little deeper than the base you plan, and look at what comes out.^[1]

When 80 percent of a map unit sits under cover, the open ground that is left comes in scraps: tree wells, a side passage, the strip between a wall and a sidewalk. Those pockets can hold packed fill that drains slowly, and a few inches of #57 Crushed Stone under a new path or planter gives trapped water a place to go. Clean stone with open gaps between the pieces does that job far better than leftover dirt from the dig.^[1]

Disturbed fill also settles unevenly once it carries new weight. For a walkway or a small parking pad, dig out the soft spots, lay a woven geotextile, and build back with Road Base in thin lifts, packing each lift with a plate compactor before the next one goes down. Skipping the fabric on mixed fill lets the base sink into the softer patches over a few seasons, and the surface ends up with dips that hold ice.^[1]

The Rock Below the Fill

Beneath the fill, the USGS state geologic map places the Rome Formation at the ZIP's center point, a Cambrian unit made of shale, siltstone, sandstone, dolostone and limestone. A mix like that weathers unevenly. Shale and siltstone break down into slick, fine clay, while the sandstone and carbonate beds stay as harder ledges.^[2]

Where a dig for a footing or a deep planter reaches weathered shale, water can perch on top of it after a storm. A bed of Drain Rock at the bottom of the hole, sloped toward a lower spot, carries that water sideways instead of letting it soak back into the new work. If the dig meets a hard ledge instead, level the low side with Road Base rather than trying to break the rock out.^[2]

The USGS elevation service reads 920 feet above sea level for the ground at the mapped center of the ZIP. Whatever the height, set any new path or pad a little above the nearest curb or storm grate so water leaves it rather than pooling on it.^[3]

Rain, Snow and Frost at the Airport Gauge

Weather figures for this ZIP come from the NOAA normals station at Roanoke RGNL AP, VA, about 4 miles away. That gauge averages 42.8 inches of precipitation a year. On a lot that is mostly roof and pavement, water arrives fast at the few open patches, so a bed beside a downspout needs coarse stone at the bottom, not loose soil.^[4]

Snowfall at the airport station averages 14.8 inches a year. Shovel and plow piles end up on whatever gravel lies beside a walk, and a strip of #57 Crushed Stone takes that abuse better than mulch, which floats away when the pile melts. Rock salt thrown on a nearby walk also does less harm to stone than to a planted edge.^[4]

In a normal year the same station logs 77 days with a low of 32 F or colder. Water held in a fine, dirty base swells each time it freezes, so a walk built from clean, angular stone over a drained bed heaves far less than one laid straight on fill. Pavers set on Concrete Sand over that kind of base stay flatter through the cold months, too.^[4]

April 3 is the median last spring freeze at Roanoke RGNL AP, and November 1 is the median first fall freeze. Planter work with Garden Soil and mulch fits after the April date, and base work that needs dry, unfrozen fill fits best before the November one.^[4]

Planters, Tree Pits and Courtyards

The Census counts 634 housing units in ZIP 24011, and only 1 percent of them are detached single-family houses. Across Roanoke as a whole, 62 percent of the 49,106 housing units are detached houses.^[5]

The median home in the ZIP dates to 1939 or earlier, compared with a median year of 1958 for the city. Owners live in 7 percent of the occupied homes in ZIP 24011. Orders for a ZIP of apartments and older brick buildings can come from property managers, churches and shop owners as often as from residents.^[5]

Planting space on Urban land comes in boxes and pits more than open beds. For a raised planter, fill the bottom few inches with #57 Crushed Stone, add a layer of filter fabric, and top it with Garden Soil mixed with Compost so roots get loose, rich ground above a layer that drains. Leave an inch or two of space below the rim so mulch and watering do not spill over.^[1]

Tree pits along a sidewalk can take Black Shredded Mulch or a ring of River Rock. River Rock stays put when street sweepers pass, while mulch feeds the soil as it breaks down and needs a fresh layer each spring. A courtyard bed against a brick wall does well with Brown Shredded Mulch, which softens the look of old masonry and keeps splash off the wall.^[1]

Pea Gravel or Stone Dust Screenings for a Courtyard Path

Pea Gravel is round, smooth and easy on the eye, and it drains at once. The round stones also roll underfoot and creep onto pavement unless a steel or stone edge holds them. Stone Dust Screenings pack into a firm, nearly smooth face that suits a chair, a stroller or a wheelchair, though they shed water slowly and need a slight crown.^[1]

Over the packed fill that Urban land can hide, a screenings path wants a few inches of Road Base under it, compacted hard. Pea Gravel can sit on a thinner layer of 3/4" Crushed Stone, but it still needs that edge. For a path that leads to a building door, screenings track in less grit than loose gravel, which matters in a lobby or a shop.^[1]

The Virginia Department of Transportation names Aggregate Base Material, Type I, Size No. 21A, Section 208, Road and Bridge Specifications (2020) as its standard for the layer under state roads.^[6]

A Parking Strip That Stays Put

Many small lots downtown end in a gravel strip where a car noses in or a dumpster sits. On mixed fill, that strip needs the same build as a driveway: dig out the soft material, lay fabric, compact Road Base, then cap it with an angular stone that locks.^[1]

Crushed Concrete and #57 Crushed Stone both hold under a parked wheel, and Asphalt Millings pack into a dark, firm surface that sheds snow well once the sun hits it. A low curb or timber at the back keeps the stone from being pushed onto the sidewalk every winter, when plows and tires shove the loose top layer toward the street.^[4]