permaculture

[Elfpermacl@aol.com]

In a message dated 9/22/98 12:43:53 AM, newman@bcinternet.net wrote:

<<I have trees but no information on groves, Miekal.

I'm looking for advice on building a retaining wall from logs/fallen trees.
The bank
is beside my house and about six feet high. I want to halt erosion and soil
flow. Any
advice or references? I've found a little helpful material in the Permaculture
manual.

Jeffrey Newman>>

First, if the trees are of species that rot quickly, you are wasting your
time, if they are species such as willow or mulberry that sprout from logs,
you may well end up with a living wall.

Now, lay a length of logs the long way along the bank.  Backfill level with
the logs or just a little lower.  Now lay short lengths, maybe 8 feet,
pointing into where the bank will be so that the ends of these logs rest on
the first course.  Now backfill so that you can lay a nother course of logs
the long way.  The logs going into the bank use the pressure from the load to
hold the logs beneath them in place.  If you make the bank slope back a bit
away from the edge at the bottom you can plant in the spaces.  Notching the
logs is ok if they are rot-resistant species, but the wall will not last as
long.  I wouldn't bother.  I built a wall like this when I was a college
student, 40 years ago, and it is still in place with no maintenance required. 

For Mother Earth, Dan Hemenway, Yankee Permaculture Publications (since 1982),
Elfin Permaculture workshops, lectures, Permaculture Design Courses,
consulting and permaculture designs (since 1981), and annual correspondence
courses via email.  Copyright, 1998, Dan & Cynthia Hemenway, P.O. Box 52,
Sparr FL 32192 USA  Internships. YankeePerm@aol.com  

We don't have time to rush.

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