How To Build A Retaining Wall In The Country, Types Of Retaining Walls

"Anthem" retaining wall

Probably, none of the elements of garden design conceals so many opportunities in arranging and changing the space, as retaining walls, which have their main purpose - to support the soil on the slope.

Retaining walls can revive a boring flat area beyond recognition, emphasize the landscape beauty of natural "inconveniences".

As a rule, retaining walls are used to create a patio space that is hidden from prying eyes by a fence, hedge and, of course, a retaining wall. The patio level is often deliberately flooded.

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When dealing with a specific site, it is very important to observe the proportionality of the retaining wall, garden, and yard - the wall should not dominate the general landscape of the site and, if the size of the site and the house allows, then you can create a single terrace on a steep slope using a high retaining wall. But it is possible to form a system of terraces on the slope with several retaining walls, originally interconnected by complex transitions, stairs, intriguingly changing their direction.

Fragments of an alpine slide will fit well into this composition, but you can go the other way, creating small offices from a hedge on the terraces. Perhaps, if performed successfully, such a composition will bring you associations with romantic Renaissance gardens.

If, nevertheless, the choice is stopped on the first option (a sufficiently high retaining wall with one terrace), the owner of the site or the designer will have to solve a more difficult task, because the retaining wall will in any case be an accent in the garden, and this emphasis should be justified by the original idea and style harmony all components of the composition.

The traditional solution is a wall-mounted pond with a waterfall. A large arch in the retaining wall with flowering shrubs growing in it will look very pompous. The composition of the built-in artistic lattice in the arch of the retaining wall with a running stream can be very picturesque. But you can go further and make a retaining wall in the form of a mountain range with a mysterious entrance to the crevice, entwined with vines, hinting at the hidden treasures of Ali Baba.

The most common solution - when the retaining wall is the background for the barbecue fireplace - after such fantasies will seem boring, but it has a chance to be chosen by the kebab lovers. In any case, the more non-standard the solution, the more you will feel the charm of the novelty and originality of the surrounding atmosphere of the garden.

The colonnade, adjacent to the retaining wall and serving as a gazebo for tea parties, can act as a non-standard accent. Imagine the roof of a colonnade with cereals growing on it merging with the terrace of the retaining wall! In this case, the texture and geometry of the stone, the size of the plants, the historical style and, finally, the proportions of the entire structure must be carefully verified.

As a rule, gardeners avoid creating such significant retaining walls on their own, preferring to equip the walls, which are a fence for flower beds no more than 60 cm high.

If the soil level rises along the road from the gate to the door of the house, then retaining walls perpendicular to the path and made in the form of a fence for flower beds are a favorite technique of gardeners.

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Sometimes designers organize complex systems of retaining walls, flower beds, stairs and paths, creating amazing transitions from one terrace to another, gradually moving towards the house. If the path to the house is perpendicular to the slope, then the retaining wall is erected along the edge of the path from the side of the slope and repeats all the bends of the path. Moreover, its height can be variable.

On the "inconveniences", which are a treasure trove for designers, it is quite possible to build whole labyrinths of retaining walls, which can function here as bridges and paths. It is best to use a natural stone, bonded with mortar. Ruin-like masonry in the thickets of plants of this strip will remind you of the now fashionable nature garden style. Such a corner can be arranged in any garden.

When choosing a material for a retaining wall, it is necessary to take into account the strength of the material and the style significance of the object.

For example, when building an alpine slide, when pockets for planting plants are created with the help of retaining walls, it is natural to choose natural stone with beautiful large chips. At the same time, it is necessary to ensure the engineering strength of the rock garden wall.

For a low retaining wall in country style, cement-bonded pebbles are suitable; broken slate looks noble in low ruin-like walls, among thickets of erect flowers, such as foxglove. Higher walls from one and a half to 2.5 m are made of coarse sandstone or terracotta bricks. The main thing is that the material goes well with the main buildings.

A strong aesthetic element of the garden, the retaining wall is at the same time an engineering structure. When starting its construction, it is necessary, first of all, to ensure drainage - after all, the weight of the soil behind the wall increases as moisture accumulates in it. Therefore, it is necessary to leave gaps of a quarter of a brick in the wall during masonry, or insert PVC pipes with a diameter of at least 40 mm into the masonry.

With high humidity in the area, it is necessary to build absorption wells: the space between the wall and the steep slope is filled with hard crushed material (broken bricks, stones, gravel). Large pieces are stacked first, and drainage pipes are inserted at regular intervals into the lowest row.

The strength of the wall is determined by the strength of its adhesion to the foundation and the quality of the mortar. The most durable types of masonry for retaining walls are Flemish, English and English garden masonry.

Of course, facing bricks are best suited for the construction of retaining walls. Bricks that are placed below ground level must be frost-resistant or of increased strength, and the construction of formwork will prevent the earthen slope from collapsing onto fresh, just laid out masonry.

Natural stone, brick, wood - not the whole range of materials: you can lay out interesting inclusions from ceramics, shells, pebbles.

A small wall - up to one meter - can be erected without a binder solution, using the dry masonry method. Such a wall is more environmentally friendly, because built from natural materials. If ornamental plants are planted in the cracks between the stones, it will become a real garden decoration.