What do I look for in a good quality decorative stones for the garden?

My mother had some decorative stones a friend gave her for a gift last year and they crumbled to bits of nothing this coming spring. THe material these stones obviouly could not stand the cold weather we get here in the Midwest. I want to give my mother some new decorative stones for the garden but I want to make sure they don't dissenegrate like the previous stones. The stones will stay outside all year, every year. We have very cold winters here and very hot summers so the decorative stones need to withstand both weather conditions and stay in one piece. What kind of rock do I need to look for that will be sturdy like this? Where are good places to shop for such stones?





Any suggestions would be great. Thank you.

What do I look for in a good quality decorative stones for the garden?
look for stones that are native to your area. My father lives in a new subdivision that was once farm land. I got some great stones and boulders from there for my gardens. They're free and the developer wants them moved for the houses anyway. One of the developers is even piling them up by the street hoping people will take them away. Getting local rocks means they will obviously stand the weather, and if they don't they didn't cost anything anyway. check out new subdivisions in your area and even local farmers will sometimes have piles of rocks that they remove from their fields every year from the frost pushing them up to the surface. This way you save money and can pick the ones you like. Hope this helps.
Reply:Go to your nearest excavating or landscaping company and tell them what you are using the stones for and they will help you pick out what you need.
Reply:Go up to northern Michigan and pick up stones off the sides of the dirt roads way out in the country. They are called "pudding rocks".......
Reply:thick material....do not buy cheap ones in the dollar store as they disentagrate.....usually from a garden store as they last longer