Typical Algarvian Dry Stone Walling

dry stone wall construction

A lost of people don’t realize that a minimal mortar ‘dry’ stone wall is considerably cheaper than its’ conventional brick and pillar counterpart. Not only will it easily outlast the latter, it's virtually maintenance free as well as fire, water and insect resistant and if built properly, it can also withstand earthquakes. Its’ construction does not deplete any natural resources, is environmentally friendly and aesthetically compliments your garden. Surely a win, win solution.

Mortared walls degrade over time as rain and fluctuations in temperature serve to crack and push apart the seams. A well built stone wall drains naturally without damage. Significantly, concrete footings are not needed which also saves in additional labour and material costs.

rock wall in flower

To begin with, our experienced team lay two rows of larger rocks about 10 – 15cm apart. Your wall, whether it’s a retaining wall or a stand alone boundary, will need to lean in towards a counteracting balance. So, if your property is built into a hillside or on a slope and you want to terrace your garden to grow your plants or vegetables, the landfill behind the wall will be your counterbalance. Similarly, if the wall is to be a boundary wall, then the two rows of rock will gently slope inwards against each other, giving both sides additional gravitational strength. In between these rows we will tamp in small stones and soil or a small amount of mortar. We are skilled in selecting rocks that fit neatly together as if they were made for each other. The final row will be just one rock wide and because the structure slopes slightly inward, any ground movement or settlement locks the structure more tightly together as their flexibility allows for slight shifts without damaging the overall structure.

We could perhaps, add in a few annual flower seeds or bulbs such as Antirrhinums, Poppy Seeds or simply a selection of wild flower seeds to your soil infill, and in a few months time you will have pockets of colour bursting from the gaps and seams between the stones.