dirtdorphins said: Well try whatever you want to do--a mounded thing or whatever--and see how it works then.

Too bad you're not closer--I need to do a lot of thinning and could give you a whole bunch of succulent type and other groundcovers to experiment with

Does doing a mounded thing mean I'd have to mortar between rocks? Might have to do stacked pavers with no space for dirt to escape.

No, you certainly don't have to mortar between rocks--might just have to add dirt from time to time, though.
Stacked pavers will kinda defeat the repurposing of all your rocks, but if you like the paver look, you could do that. Then it's more of a "raised bed" and you could make it as tall as you want.

Well that's good to know. An article I read on another website said I would have to do that. I think I'll stop researching ... too much information. I was thinking pavers wouldn't have to be cemented together ... but that then I'd use rocks within paver walls. I guess that doesn't make sense.

We've been having crazy winds that are so bad it's hard to do anything outside.

Does succulent soil mix have to have grit? I also saw something about using "builder's sand". Is one better than the other?

Also, on one site, they're selling bags of river rock for the top layer. They looked the same size as rocks I have in my yard. I have lots of small, smooth, different colored rocks. I assume it's okay to use what I have. Is it?