Dry stone walls – Building a wall yourself

Dry stone walls were originally a popular method of creating boundaries due to the fact that dry stone walls are inexpensive and consist only of stones, which are readily available in certain areas of the UK. Many people still use these stone wall construction techniques for these reasons, but also for their natural beauty and ability to blend in with the countryside. The popularity of dry stone walls is widespread in the UK, but they are mainly used in Scotland, Lancashire, Cumbria and Yorkshire. The walls themselves are made with stones and rocks placed specifically so that they interlock, eventually forming a solid structure. They are often used for field borders, but also as a garden border, so it is helpful for people to know how to build them themselves.

The first step
The first thing to do is estimate the amount of stone you need for your wall. Once you’ve done that, you’ll need to find a source of stones. The best thing about stone walls is that it requires stones of various shapes and sizes, so you can find them anywhere. You could go around the field (although this could be very time consuming) or find a recently demolished outbuilding and request the use of the stones that are likely to go to the landfill. Alternatively you can buy stone from certain vendors, limestone being a very popular choice for dry stone boundaries.

How to build a dry stone wall
Now for the construction of the wall itself, this starts with digging a shallow trench in an outline as you want your wall to sit. Once you have done that, you need to make the base of the wall with very flat and wide stones. It is important that these stones are all level with each other. The next layer should have the stones laid over the joints of the stones at the base. This is the technique that you continue to use as you build each layer. The stones should gradually get smaller as you build a taller wall and remember not to use small stones near the base of the wall as this will make it unstable. There are several dry stone wall courses around the country or if you’re not sure if you’re up to the job, call an expert!