ᐅ Eco-friendly paving – what ideas do you have?

Hello,

after 10 years, we are getting tired of the paving and related maintenance. Back then, we filled the joints with gravel. Now, it requires sweeping, scraping out the joints, and so on. Additionally, a green film is slowly forming (see photo).

What do you recommend? Should we sweep in sand? Let the moss grow? Or maybe seal the joints after all?

Thanks a lot

You’ve already discussed this topic before:

ᐅ Moss on stones & weeds between the joints

And I still believe in allowing the joints to become mossy.

Weed killer or flame weeding.
There’s nothing you can do about the gravel gradually disappearing. If you sweep in sand, the water won’t drain as quickly, and the sand will also wear away from the joints over time.

Last year, I treated a section of our driveway with regular rectangular paving stones using a pressure washer with a surface cleaner after 10 years. The driveway looked like new afterwards. However, all the joints were washed out.

Our driveway with permeable paving looks similar to yours. Soil and moss have settled on the gravel in the wide joints almost everywhere. Green or dark patches form on the paving stones. My wife finds it bothersome, but I’m less concerned because when I look at pictures of permeable paving, growth in the joints is actually intentional.
I also considered using the pressure washer with a surface cleaner on the permeable paving, but decided against it for now, as it would probably require completely new joint filler afterwards.

By the way, I would not use sand in the wide joints.

Sweep in the seed mix for joints or similar areas and allow it to establish properly.