We don't have a house on the property yet, but did make a fire pit area and on the outside area of the firepit we dumped loads of mulch and then spread it.
As to cost, the tree companies many times will drop for free if you can find one that is working in the area....check to see who your power company uses for trees/limbs and contact them. It is typically 100% waste for them and wood chips are easy to walk on / will decompose into the soil over the years.
The typical ground up hardwoods that tree companies will drop off for free here last for 3-4 years before disappearing. They are pretty good at drying up wet bare dirt.
Gravel will last a lifetime, but it ain't free.
![[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/ed/b5/e7/edb5e7f935843b996cf52be593c9ebd2--smoothie-smooth-collie.jpg)
