What, exactly, are you trying to accomplish? It sounds like you are after an alpine garden/path/drainage course, which isn't at all a comfortable mix of uses.

If you have the stones, try laying out a few in the pattern you are planning, and *walk* on them. Ask other family members to do so also. Keeping to the stones isn't at all a natural gait, but takes paying attention and care with placing feet. Most people will probably end up walking on the non-stone parts of the path a great deal. And the desired fill material is not gravel. If you insist on calling it gravel, people will assume you are talking about gravel. The stones will move on a gravel base. Either sand or the material known to Agway here as Step 2. It has a lot of other names, crushed stone, stone dust, among others. It packs down to form a solid base.

Woodchips do not break down into acidic soil. At least not according to the people who decompose things and them test them. Also moss isn't necessarily an acidophile. However, a soil mix of crushed stone and some of your native soil might work quite well. It just generally sounds like you need to do a lot more research into which plants you are interested in growing and what their needs are, and plan to make them a home where people won't be regularly walking on them.

If all the property's drainage is going towards this object, both woodchips and stone chips are going to wash out.

If you want a path, I'd plan on at least a hopscotch pattern (2,1,2), with the understanding that the plants are part of the path. If you want the area to be a planting bed, then decide which set of plants for specialized beds you are most interested in, research them, and prepare a bed for them.

The current situation is total overkill for either of those plans. I'm not convinced I went deeper than 6" anywhere in my dry laid patio, and that was built with rock I dug up on the property, so they aren't dressed in any way.

I used to live at a house with a similar path - stepping stones inter spaced with what you are calling gravel. Hated it with a passion. As soon as I has the $$ saved up I replaced it with a real concrete sidewalk.

We did a 3ft wide bike/walking trail around our property for the kids. Part of it originially had pea gravel with flagstone on it. Hated it because the stones constantly shifted when the younger kids walked on them, plus not a chance they could ride a bike on it. We removed all that and did crusher stone. Still has great drainage, dries very fast, doesnt run off from rain and maintains a solid surface when the kids break out their bikes. We rented a tamper and made sure the trail was packed good and hard. Also was very cost effective. 15tons was only $285 delivered. Which did the whole trail on an acre property, plus we had some left over for the wooded single track. The other thing I love, but you may hate, is the gray stone made my grass, hostas and other wooded plants color pop. I know some are not a fan of gray.

We have what I think you might be envisioning. The substrate is just earth--- hard Georgia clay that was tamped down with a gas powered tamper. Originally we filled the space with dwarf mondo fp grass but the sun was far too hot for it, and replaced the mondo grass with pea gravel. We love it, and it looks great--- far nicer than a concrete walkway (and far more expensive, I will add!).

The picture was taken in the late fall after we finished landscaping, so it looks a bit dull in this photo. Right now the crape myrtle is in full flower (Natchez variety) and the Indian Hawthorn hedge is mature.

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