As promised last week, I'm going to describe how to create a beautiful rock garden. I know it's too early to be actually hauling rocks around the yard, but planning ahead is always a good thing. Alpine plants, or those suited to rock gardens, do well in a sunny, well-drained location. An ideal spot for a rock garden would be a south or southeast slope with changes in level for interest. If a natural setting is not a possibility, use stone terraces and flagstone paths for a more formal rock garden.
Most rock plants do well in any fertile, well-drained loam soil.
If the soil is poorly drained, install drainage tile and add coarse sand to heavy soils. You can build a small rock garden on top of the existing soil. Place the rocks first, then fill the spaces between with a prepared soil consisting of two parts loam soil and one part coarse sand. If a site is relatively level, drainage is critical. In this situation, excavate the proposed garden area about 12 inches deep.