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Stone - knowledge
Amphibolite
Amphibolite is a metamorphic rock composed of anphibole and poligioclase in dark grey and green colour. It is a product of alteration of magma rocks.
Application:
It is used mainly as aggregate for building roads. In garden architecture for building rock and water gardens.
Basalt
Basalt belongs to magma eruptive rocks. It can be easily distinguished from other rocks by its dark, almost black colour, packed composition and weight which is larger than that of other rocks. Basalt is composed of lime-rich feldspars and dark minerals such as pyroxene, olivine and others, containing (beside lime) magnesium and iron. Because of the fact that basalt contains more iron, lime and magnesium than granite it is heavier.
Application:
It is characteristic of basalts to have exceptionally favourable physical properties, large resistance to chemical and physical weathering, compression and grinding strength. Thanks to those properties basalts do not undergo decomposition. Basalt is used for making aggregate of different fraction. Basalt being a volcanic eruptive rock can be melted and that is why it can be used for making castings (parts of gutters, pipes and other elements resistant to grinding and action of acids.) Basalt posts are especially useful in garden architecture and they can be present in the form of monumental boulders, single or in groups, standing on the ground or jutting out from water. By cutting basalt posts we obtain plates of varied diameter and thickness which, combined with grey or red granite cubes, can be used for paving paths and terraces. In case of large thickness of cut posts, the stone we obtain can be used for laying stairs or for seats. Basalt is also used for making pavement cube, plates and tiles. The only drawback of basalt products is high price. It does not apply to aggregate.
Diabase
Diabase is a relative of basalt, considering the genesis it is older than basalt. It is a product of thickening of basalt magma which emerged up from the depth of the earth and crystallized here. That happened earlier than eruption of the magma of which basalts were made. Diabase is dark with a characteristic green shade and slightly thicker grains than those of basalt.
Application:
It is used mainly as material for building roads. Cube is not made of it. In garden architecture it is used for building rock gardens, effective as large boulders.
Gabbro
Gabbro is dark, sometimes almost black. Its specific gravity is larger than that of granite. This rock is difficult to process, much less friable than granite and syenite. Being hard to process it is not applied widely.
Application:
It is used mainly as road-metal and break-stone. It can be used as material in the form of surface plates but it is difficult to obtain rocks which are little cracked. In garden architecture it is mainly used for building rock gardens. Uniform dark colour can slightly be marked with white flashes.
Gneisses
Gneisses belong to a larger and at the same time more important groups of metamorphic rocks. They were created in the mid-deep zones of metamorphism as a result of alteration of magma rocks saturated and over-saturated with silica as well as sedimentary clay rocks and greywacke. In their mineralogical composition there are always feldspars and quartz which are usually accompanied by micas. Depending on the dominant components gneiss receives special names, for example oligoclase, biotite, hornblende gneiss etc. It is also possible to distinguish certain types of gneiss of characteristic structure and texture (laminated gneiss, eyelet gneiss). In this group of metamorphic rocks a characteristic structure was formed, it is called gneiss structure.
Application:
They are used as material for building roads and strengthening flood banks. Thanks to their characteristic structure i texture (grey, slightly shining colour, nice layered built in section) they are used in garden architecture. They look flashily in rock and water gardens. Gneiss can be obtained in the form of natural stone plates which are used for laying terraces and paths, combined with for example syenite, basalt, porphyry or red granite cube. Plates can also be used for building nice water-falls and natural stairs in a rock garden. It is rare to have gneiss cube, it has layered built. From the above description it can be seen that in garden architecture it is gaining considerable application.
Granite
Granite is the most common rock and probably most often used by men. It is a magma abyssal rock which, while cooling down slowly inside the earth, crystallized its components (the minerals of which it is composed) in the form of differently shaped crystals. The most important components of granite are: dark mica, light white and grey quartz as well as pink or yellow and grey feldspar. Mica is a soft mineral, present in the form of sheets, quartz is very hard and feldspar is slightly less hard than quartz. Granite may exist in various colours and its texture may be varied, depending on the size of grains. In Poland it exists mainly in grey colour and there are small quantities in light brown, so called reddish. There is also red granite but this one is imported.
Application:
It is used as material for building roads in the form of aggregate and cube. Granite is used for making varied stone fancy goods, which can be applied in garden architecture. Broken stone or rock blocks are useful for building rock gardens. Granite can also be used making a wide range of materials for garden surfaces (cube of different size, curbs, plates); combined with stones of different colour (syenite, basalt, porphyry) it is possible to lay interesting mosaics. Red granite is also a valuable addition to such mosaics but it is used less commonly because of its high price. Granite is also used for producing formatted wall stone which can be applied in the building of retaining walls, fences; it is widely applied in construction.
Quartz
Quartz is present in magma rocks, metamorphic and sedimentary in the form of small crystals but it also creates uniform deposits. Quartz is most often grey or cream colour, other colours are less common. Crystals of quartz were created either from magma while it was slowly cooling down, or evolved from hot water solutions where quartz veins were created.
Application:
Pure quartz is used in production of porcelain and glass. Moreover quartz is used for producing silicon steel, silicon cast iron, optical tools and laboratory quartz vessels. In garden architecture it is used for building steel and water gardens. It is known for large durability and interesting colour; large boulders properly exhibited look nice.
Quartzite
Quartzite belongs to silica rocks, it is close to some types of sandstones, especially sandstones of silica binders. Quartzite is composed in 99% or even more of grains of quartz which are very tightly adherent. They can be light grey, grey and blue, brown or yellow and red. The composition is so tight that we can not see or touch separate grains of quartz. Quartzite is exceptionally resistant to mechanical processing. In this field they prevail over rocks as hard as for example granite.
Application:
It is used in the industry of fire-resistant materials and as aggregate in road construction. In garden architecture it is not widely applied because it is not possible to use it for making stone fancy goods or other products such as cube. However, because of the variety of colours, interesting texture (chatoyant of the small quartz grains) it is very valuable in the building of rock and water gardens
Phyllite schist
t is composed of alternate layers some of which are darker and others lighter of the thickness of 0.1 to 0.5 cm. The structure is small-grain or pellite, texture of bityte, clorite as well as small grains of quartz and feldspars. Phyllite schist is dark grey or graphite.
Application:
Schist used to be applied in roofing (roofing tile). In garden architecture it can be used for laying paths terraces. Flat plates may be used for facing of building walls and fences.
Quartzite schist
Primarily quartzite schist used to belong to sedimentary rocks but later they underwent metamorphism in the deeper parts of the crust of the earth. Their main component is quartz with some admixtures of sericite. In quartzite schist it is sometimes possible to find pockets of kaolin in which there are beautiful crystals of quartz. Schist is light grey and sericite flakes are the cause of the glasslike quality of the stone.
Application:
Due to the chemical and physical properties it is a valuable resource for production of fire resistant goods. In garden architecture it is also possible to find a range of applications for quartzite schist. Flat plates may be used as surface of garden paths and terraces; light grey colour of schist contrasts well with other stones of different colour. Large plates may also be used for building beautiful water-falls combined with rock gardens.
Swricite schist
Primarily it was mudstone schist which, due to the change of physical and chemical underwent metamorphism. Within the schist, apart from, micas, sericite and biotite, it is possible to find small lens of quartz as well as small lens of garnet. The colour of sericite schist is varied, honey and brown with lens of quartz or grey of almost metallic quality.
Application:
In garden architecture it may be used for laying garden paths and terraces. With larger stones it is possible to build rock or water gardens. Thin plates are used for facing buildings or fences.
Marble
Primarily marble belonged to sedimentary rocks (limestone and dolomites), which during the long history of the earth, as a result of high temperatures and pressure underwent metamorphosis and cracking. In marble it is possible to find the same fossils as in limestone. Marble is known for its light colour with colourful inter-layers. Marble can also be red.
Application:
Marble plates are used in building for interior finishing and rarely for outside facades. Aggregate is used for terrazzo. In garden architecture large rocks look good when properly exposed. Thanks to the light colour it contrasts strongly with the greens in the garden.
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock which originated in water environment. It has natural layering. These layers were settled in water horizontally but currently they have completely different position because, due to the movements of the crust of the earth they have become slightly inclined or positioned vertically. Quartz is the main component of sandstone but there are also admixtures of other minerals such as mica or feldspar. Physical properties of sandstone and the colour depend on the type of the binder which binds separate grains of quartz. The colour of sandstone can be varied, white, cream, grey, yellow, brown and red.
Application:
It is widely applied in building; being easy to process it is used for making plates and blocks of different kind. In garden architecture it is also widely applied; it can be used as stone for rock and water gardens, for laying garden surfaces of plates and cube, for building retaining walls and fences. Sandstone is also used for gardens fancy goods (flowerbeds, flowerpots, sculptures).
Porphyry
Porphyry is an eruptive rock of acid reaction. It can be red or dark brown, rarely grey with green shade. Among large crystals it is possible to distinguish feldspar, quartz and biotite. Iron oxides which are spread inside the rock colour it red.
Application:
It is used as material for building roads as aggregate, earlier it was used for making road cube. In garden architecture it is used for building rock and water gardens.
Serpentinite
Serpentinite is a metamorphic rock built of a group of serpentine minerals with little share of minerals which are relics of primary magma rock. It was formed by transfer of ultra-basic (alkaline) magma rocks. Colour: green and olive, green and grey even black.
Application:
It is used for making fancy goods, fire resistant products; for building roads as aggregate. In garden architecture it is valuable when building water gardens, in contact with water the green colour gets more intensive. Large boulders often with light flashes look nice.
Syenite
Syenite similarly to granite belongs to magma rocks. The name syenite comes from the city of Syene, currently Asswan in Egypt where the most ancient quarries of this rock can be found. At the first sight it resembles granite but most often it is darker and slightly heavier because it contains more dark minerals (biotite, amphibole), however, it does not contain quartz or contains small quantities of it. Technical properties of syenite slightly differ from granite. First of all it is easier to grind and therefore it is easier to process with machines. Processing of syenite is harder because it is less friable but still easier to grind and polish.
Application:
It is valuable as construction stone, used for making facing plates, stairs, floors and monuments. It is also used for making cube, formatted stone and grits. Because of its black or dark grey colour it is a valuable addition as paving cube in laying garden surfaces (paths, patios, terraces, access roads etc.). It is possible to lay combined surfaces with more syenite, however, they are more expensive than those made of grey granite. It is also used for making rock and water gardens, building fences and retaining walls. Syenite is also used for making aggregate which, may be laid on garden paths.
Porphyry tuff
Porphyry tuff represents the loose phase of acid eruptions of volcanoes. In its composition dominant are feldspars, quartz, chlorotized biotites and chippings of foreign origin rocks. Tuffs are purple and pink with white irregularly positioned spots.
Application:
It is easy to process; a valued building material, resistant to the influence of the atmosphere. In AMPHIBOLITEgarden architecture it is used for building retaining walls and fences.
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rocks, its origin is related to living organisms - animals and plants living in water environment, mainly in the sea. Organisms living in the water absorb calcium. After death the animal's shell or skeleton falls down to the bottom. In this way, during millions of years the organic remains accumulated at the bottom of water reservoirs. Influenced by their own weight as well as water pressure and clayey parts falling to the bottom - loose material appeared at first and then turned into a uniform rock. Strata of the rock, as a result of movements of the crust of the earth appeared on the surface of the ground. Limestone group is very much varied physically and chemically. The colour is mainly white or grey, red and black are rare.
Application:
It is a rock applied very widely, on a large scale in cement industry. Limestone is used for making chalk and fertilizers for agriculture. Hard limestone may be used as basis in the construction of roads. In garden architecture limestone rocks are used for making rock gardens, retaining walls and fences. Limestone blocks are cut into plates which are used for finishing interiors and facings. Many historic buildings were constructed with limestone. It used to be widely applied building material used for construction of houses and farm buildings.