Following up on grit/gravel for sempervivums, I went to Home Depot, surprised by the variety of what I found. I'm searching for gravel to use on new dedicated semp beds. I bought 3 bags of Quikrete "all-purpose" gravel in 50 lb bags for $4.60 each, it's on the light gray side, can use it for other projects even if not ultimately selected for semp beds.
The one I was pleased to find is Vigoro Pea Pebbles, 50 lb bag for $2.75 (bargain). The color is a warm orangish-tan color, particularly when wet. I like the fact pebbles are of variable size, and small enough to even be used for top dressing potted plants. The pebbles are covered with a fine silt so will require washing. Home Depot had larger size versions, all the way up to bags of tan rocks that look like bags of Idaho potatoes, so one could use an interesting assortment of stones to pea pebbles. Also spotted were flat 24" square concrete pavers in a warm variegated tan color, I could imagine using these for walkways through my planned semp beds.
Some photos comparing color and size, bags of Quikrete & Vigoro Pea Pebbles:
Comparing the gravel: Quikrete on left, Vigoro Pea on the right
About 6 years ago bought 2 bags of another gravel, used one bag, other bag was ripping as it was outside for years, dumped contents into large plastic pail, it looks similar to Quikrete being in the gray color scheme but a bit more lively with pinks and tan colors and slightly finer size, but I can't remember where I bought it, so it's not an option moving forward. But just for comparison, here are all three to compare (wet), I like Vigoro Pea Gravel best, the older unknown gravel 2nd, Quikrete 3rd.
