Boulders as Snowplow Guards: Protecting Driveway Corners

An unfortunate side effect of snow removal impacts many households every year: damage from snowplows. Whether it's a damaged mailbox, tire ruts in your grass, or plow scraps on your driveway, nobody is happy to see these damages accumulate every time snow falls. Below, we’ll plow into why driveway corners in particular face damage every winter before exploring boulder guards to resist and redirect snowplows appropriately.

Why Driveway Corners Get Damaged in Winter

Driveway corners in particular are quite prone to damages over the winter via plow. This stems largely from the fact that a plow will have little guide to pathing over your driveway.

Plow Blade Damage

The plow blade itself is capable of causing major scratches and dents along a driveway whether that driveway is gravel, dirt, and paved. When first plowing, unseen changes in driveway elevation and path can cause the plow to scrap particularly hard against the driving surface.

Tire Ruts

Tire ruts are a particularly tough problem during the plowing months as well. Similarly, when a plow loses the line on your driveway due to the uniformity of the untouched snow, drifting off your driveway can be a common issue. Especially if the ground isn’t completely frozen solid, this drifting can cause major tire ruts in your grass. These ruts usually stay around for the colder months, look unsightly, and require additional effort to fix come spring time.

Choosing Boulders for Snowplow Guards

With these issues at hand, opting for boulders to use at snowplow guards can be an excellent option. That said, not every boulder makes for a good option as a plow guard. Here are important details to keep in mind before you buy:

Boulder Sizes

Boulder size is an important feature of any good snowplow guard. Small boulders (typically defined as under 1 foot tall) make for poor guards as they can be easily hidden by heavy snowfall and pushed aside by a plow, essentially making them obsolete as a barrier.

Medium boulders, in the 200-700 pound range and typically up to 2 feet tall, is where these rocks begin to get effective. Boulders in this medium range are harder to hide in snowfall and are able to withstand large snowloads being pushed against them when the plow is coming through. Large boulders in the 2-3 feet tall range also work excellent as snowplow guards. These stones are hard to move, providing solid protection for your driveway corners. The major downside to using large boulders is the need for special equipment to place/move them.

Rounded vs Square

Each shape of boulder has pros and cons when protecting your driveway corners from snowplows. Rounded boulders are “gentler”, allowing plows to roll up the surface and giving time for correction. These rounded boulders also look gentler as far as landscape aesthetics are concerned. But this shape will also be more prone to rolling if pushed with enough force.

Square boulders provide a harsher border. The square features provide a more rigid barrier for plows, which will typically cause more plow damage. At the same time, they look harsher in the landscape. But perhaps where the square shape excels the most is staying more firmly anchored on the ground when compared to a round counterpart.

May 9, 2025

5 Ways to Use Boulders in Your Home's Landscape

Landscape boulders bring instant character, dimension, and structure to any outdoor space. Common landscape boulders range from manageable 18"-48" stones to 49"+ statement pieces, with specialized square boulders available for specific uses.

rEAD MORE

How to Place Boulders Along Your Driveway

Naturally, the placement of your boulders along your driveway is also crucial to their success.

Set Back from the Plow Path

While the boulders are used to shape the plow path, giving the plow some room on either side of your driveway before hitting stone is essential. Plows need room to maneuver themselves and large snowpiles without risking damages. Boulders that are too close will cause many plows to stop coming to your driveway. At the same time, communicating the locations of these boulders with your plower makes a more streamlined process for all involved.

Embed on a Stone Base

You do not want to just toss boulders on grass/dirt either. Boulders on these surfaces will shift and depress over time changing the look and effectiveness. Instead, a base of crushed gravel at the bottom of a hole that is around ⅓ of the boulder’s height can provide much needed protection against this type of settling while keeping aesthetics top notch.

Order Landscape Boulders from Landscape Barn Today

If you’re looking for landscape boulders to protect your driveway this winter, look no further than Landscape Barn! Leave the winters of tire ruts, broken mailboxes, and scratched driveways goodbye. With a huge selection of stones and boulders in all sizes, we have exactly the rocks you’re looking for to battle plow damages and any other home improvement project you can dream up. Our easy to use website will have the perfect boulders coming to your house in no time. Call or go online to Landscape Barn today to see our incredible selection and experience the power of the Landscape Barn.

‍

‍