How to Build A Retaining Wall Flower Bed

The stone paver retaining wall I built makes a perfect raised flower bed!

A great outdoor project for spring or summer is to build a retaining wall. Retaining walls are used to reduce soil erosion, but they can also be built to create a pretty flower bed.

Things You'll Need

• Stones or pavers
• Rock Chisel
• Hammer
• Gloves
• Tamper

Instructions

1. Determine How Many Stones or Pavers You Will Need

   The first step is to figure out how many stones or brick pavers you will need for the job. While it is fairly easy to do the math, one simple way to measure how many pavers you will need is to take a string or rope and draw out how big you want your retaining wall to be. In my case, I drew a semi-circle with a rope around the window. I then measured out the rope to figure out how many stones I would need for my raised flower bed. Once you know how much material to buy, add another 5-10% in case one of the stones or pavers break. You can always return what you don't use.

2. Make Sure the Ground is Level

   You will need to tamp the ground where you will be placing your stones or pavers to make sure that the ground is perfectly level. If the ground is not level it will cause your wall to be uneven.

3. Lay Down Your First Row of Pavers

   Place the pavers or stones down in the area that you have tamped. Use a level, if necessary, to make sure that your pavers are at equal height from the ground. If they are not, you will need to tamp the ground to lower the dirt, or add some dirt to raise the ground up.

4. Staggering Rows

   It's visually appealing to stagger the rows of the stones. To do this you will need to cut the material. Score the backside of the paver to create a shallow groove. Then use the hammer and chisel to break the paver in half. You can use this half to start a new row of pavers.

5. Continue Building

   Continue building the retaining wall as high as you'd like. As I was only building a raised flower bed, I only built the rows 4 high, as I did not want the flowers to be much higher than the window sill.

Tips & Warnings

• Wear gloves

• Consider sloping the dirt that the wall will sit on away from any structure; in my raised flower bed it helps to prevent water intrusion

• If you are having problems leveling the ground, you can spread sand to help level the surface