Replacing mulch with river rock

[dwyman]

I am doing a bid to change all landscaping beds from mulch to river rock. He specified he wanted landscape fabric.

My question is: do I need to do any prepwork to the ground (such as weed the beds or remove any mulch?) or just lay the fabric down around existing plants and install rock? I will be putting down 3" of rock.

Thanks for any input. I do all lawn maintenance so this would be the first actual landscaping job if I get it.

[chriscampbell]

If the bed is along the home, I would check to see where the foundation level is at. You would not be able to go 3inches above the foundation level. Also if there are a lot of plants and trees, you will prolly have to remove the mulch in few areas. You can not build up material around a tree that high or it will harm the tree. I believe anything higher than an inch can be harmful. Give some more details and I am sure some more people will give you some helpful info.

[MortNuke]

Will the plants and trees be able to tolerate the heat reflected off the rocks?