Green shoot growing out of a stone's own crack, two leavesGreen, pale green. Pick a stone with a crack; a stem rising from it; two small leaves; the rest left bare.
Three piglets from behind in a row, a curly tail on eachPink, brown. Three pink ovals side by side on a wide stone; a pen curl on each; brown mud at their feet.
Chick in red rain boots splashing through a puddleYellow, red, blue. The chick mid-stone in two red boots; a blue puddle under it; pen drops flying up.
Black-faced lamb on four pen legs in long grassWhite, black, green. A dabbed white body; black face and legs; green flicks up from the bottom rim.
Chick in red rain boots splashing through a puddleYellow, red, blue. The chick mid-stone in two red boots; a blue puddle under it; pen drops flying up.
Chick pecking at seed dots scattered over a flat stoneYellow, orange, brown. The chick head-down near one edge; brown swab-dot seeds spread across the rest.
Chick seen from above: a yellow circle, a beak, two feetYellow, orange. A round pebble all yellow; a small orange beak at one rim; two small orange feet at the other.
Gosling in gray-yellow down on two oversized feetYellow, gray, black. A dabbed round body; a small head on a short neck; two big dark webbed feet at the rim.
Kid goat balanced on the top of a boulder-shaped stoneWhite, brown, gray. A small goat, four hooves together, at the very top; the rest of the stone left bare.
Lamb peeking around its mother's woolly sideCream, white, black. A big cream curve fills the stone; a small white face with black eyes at its edge.
Swab-dot lamb: white wool dots on a grass-green stoneGreen, white, black. Green all over; a cluster of white swab dots for wool; a black head and four short legs.
Tadpoles circling a pond-green pebble, tails in penGreen, black. Green all over; black fingertip dots in a loose ring; one wavy pen tail behind each.
Three piglets from behind in a row, a curly tail on eachPink, brown. Three pink ovals side by side on a wide stone; a pen curl on each; brown mud at their feet.
Twin lambs asleep back to back on a wide stoneWhite, gray, pink. Two woolly ovals touching; heads turned outward; shut eyes and pink inner ears.
Two chicks tugging one worm from opposite endsYellow, pink, orange. A chick at each end of a wide stone; a pink worm stretched tight between the beaks.
Blossom, bulbs and new shoots 12
Bean-shaped pebble as a sprouting seed: one root, one shootTan, white, green. Tan all over; a white root curling from one end; a green hooked shoot from the other.
Bee headfirst in one open blossom, legs in the airPink, yellow, black. One five-petal blossom fills the stone; a striped bee's back end at its middle.
Blossom petals drifting down onto a gray path stonePink, white. Leave the stone bare; fingertip petals in pink and white, a few cut off by the rim.
Dark stone as bare soil with a row of green shoot tipsGreen, lime. Pick a dark brown stone and leave it bare; seven short green spears in a row, no two the same height.
Garden marker stone lettered BULBS BELOW, DO NOT DIGGreen, white, yellow. White capitals on a green stone; one small yellow bloom painted after the last word.
Green shoot growing out of a stone's own crack, two leavesGreen, pale green. Pick a stone with a crack; a stem rising from it; two small leaves; the rest left bare.
Long stone as a twig with pairs of green leaf buds along itBrown, green. Brown all over with pen bark lines; pairs of small green points down the length; one at the tip.
Moss creeping over the shady side of a bare gray stoneDark green, lime. Leave the stone bare; dabbed green patches spreading from one edge; lime dots on top.
New grass painted round the base so the stone sits in a tuftGreen, lime. Leave the stone bare; short green and lime flicks up from the bottom rim, all the way around.
New leaf still pleated like a fan, pale green on bare stonePale green, green. One leaf on a short stalk; fold lines running from the base to a ragged top edge.
Onion-shaped stone as a bulb in papery brown skinTan, brown, green. Tan all over with brown pen lines running to the tip; a green point just showing there.
Tall thin stone as an asparagus spear, a tight scaled tipGreen, dark green. Green all over; small pointed scales up the sides; a tight cluster of them at the narrow end.
Rain and rainbows 12
Boot print full of rainwater on a mud-brown stoneBrown, gray-blue, white. Brown all over; a sole shape in gray-blue, tread bars left brown; one white shine line.
Cloud stone with seven blue raindrop pebbles to lay belowWhite, gray, blue. Eight stones: one cloud with a gray underside and seven small blue drops to set under it.
Domed stone as a yellow rain hat, brim round the bottom rimYellow, orange, white. Yellow all over; an orange line where crown meets brim; a white shine curve; three pen drops.
First raindrops: dark spots on a dry gray stoneDark gray, pale gray. Pale gray all over; dark round spots of mixed sizes, crowded at one end, a few at the other.
Half-round stone as an umbrella top, a drip off each pointRed, white, blue. Flat edge down; red panels parted by white ribs; a blue drop under the end of each rib.
Leaf-shaped stone with one drop gathering at its tipGreen, dark green, white. Green all over with a center vein; one pale drop at the point with a shine dot.
Rain-filled flowerpot saucer, a bird drinking at its edgeTerracotta, gray-blue, brown. A flat round saucer from the side; a brown bird, tail up, beak in the water.
Rainbow as a full circle just inside a round stone's rimRed, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet. Six thin rings, red outermost, violet innermost; sky blue middle.
Rainbow that ends in a puddle, colors rippled in the waterSix rainbow colors, gray. One arc from the top rim down to a gray puddle; short wavy color dashes in it.
Splash crown thrown up where one raindrop hits a puddleGray-blue, white. A white crown of six points at the middle; a small drop flying off each; one ring below.
Teardrop stone as one fat raindrop with a sleepy faceBlue, white, black. Blue all over, lighter toward the point; a white shine curve; two shut eyes and a smile.
Three umbrellas in a row seen from behind: small, big, smallRed, yellow, blue, gray. Three canopy domes over pairs of boots; gray pen rain slanting across all three.
Nests and eggs 12
Bird sitting tight on a nest, only head and tail showingBrown, tan, black. A bowl of brown pen twigs across the middle; a small head one side, a tail tip the other.
Empty nest lined with one white feather and a tuft of mossTan, brown, white, green. Loops of brown pen round a tan stone; a white feather and a green dab at the middle.
Five wide-open beaks in a row along a nest's rimBrown, yellow, orange. Twig strokes on the lower half; five yellow diamond beaks above, orange inside.
Half a blue eggshell left on the grass after the hatchPale blue, white, green. One jagged-edged half shell, white inside; green blades around it.
Mud-cup nest under the stone's top rim, a swallow beside itTan, steel blue, rust, cream. A half cup of tan swab dots under the top edge; a fork-tailed bird clinging near.
Nest hidden in a hanging basket among trailing flowersBrown, tan, pink, green. A basket hung from the top rim; pink blooms spilling over; a tan nest in the middle.
Nest in an old kettle on a fence post, moss spilling outGray, green, brown. A dented gray kettle on its side on a brown post; green moss and twigs spilling from the opening.
Nest painted into a stone's natural dip, twigs over the lipBrown, tan, gray. Pick a stone with a hollow; brown pen twigs round its lip; a tan lining; a gray bird on the edge.
Nest tucked inside an old boot, straw poking out the topBrown, yellow, black. A worn brown boot on its side; yellow straw at the opening; one small eye in the dark.
Round stone as a door wreath, a nest tucked in at the bottomGreen, brown, tan. A ring of green leaf dabs just inside the rim; a brown twig nest at the bottom; a tan bird in it.
Tree-hole nest on a bark-brown stone, one head looking outBrown, black, gray. Bark lines down a tall stone; a dark round hole; a small gray head with a pale beak.
Twig-crossed nest stone with a bird pebble to sit on itBrown, gray. Two stones: a flat one covered in crisscross brown twig strokes and a small gray bird pebble to set on it.
How it works
A shoot, a puddle, a nest. These 48 spring rock painting ideas come 12 to a group and hold no Easter egg or bunny, which have a rock list of their own.
Read the full guide
Two stones that follow the real thing
Rainbow as a full circle just inside a round stone's rim keeps the real order, red outermost and violet innermost; from an airplane a rainbow can sometimes be seen as a full circle. The barn swallow builds a cup of mud pellets in barns, and that is the model for Mud-cup nest under the stone's top rim, a swallow beside it.
What the shape of the stone gives
Teardrop stone as one fat raindrop with a sleepy face and Leaf-shaped stone with one drop gathering at its tip need the right outline. Kid goat balanced on the top of a boulder-shaped stone leaves most of the rock bare.
Questions and answers
What can you paint on rocks for spring?
New life and wet weather: Chick in red rain boots splashing through a puddle, Dark stone as bare soil with a row of green shoot tips, or Five wide-open beaks in a row along a nest's rim.
What are some spring painted rock ideas for a garden bed?
Garden marker stone lettered BULBS BELOW, DO NOT DIG sits where the bulbs went in. Among plants, try Moss creeping over the shady side of a bare gray stone or New grass painted round the base so the stone sits in a tuft.
What are easy spring rock painting ideas?
Those made of dots and dabs. Fingertips do all the work in Blossom petals drifting down onto a gray path stone. A cotton swab dots the wool in Swab-dot lamb: white wool dots on a grass-green stone.