How to Build a Masonry & Brick Garden Wall

You don't have to be an expert to make a garden wall.

A simple brick garden wall adds character and charm to your home. You can use the garden wall to create a raised-bed garden or separate your flower beds from your grass or patio area to serve as a foundation for icy, nasturtium or other trailing vine. A masonry or brick wall relies on cement to secure the bricks together. This type of wall can be extended as long as you wish, so the amount of supplies you'll need varies.

Things You'll Need

• 2 wooden stakes
• Level
• Shovel
• 2 trowels
• Water
• Cement
• Bucket
• Bricks
• Corrugated brick ties

Instructions

1. Mark the perimeter of your wall, using small, wooden stakes. Use a level to make sure the stakes are in line with one another.

2. Dig a trench where you plan to lay the brick wall, using a shovel and trowel. "Better Homes and Gardens" recommends making this trench twice as wide as your wall, 2 inches longer than your wall and as deep as the frost line in your area. To determine your frost-line depth, call your county building inspector. Ensure the trench is level.

3. Mix cement and water in a bucket, using another trowel to mix them. Fill the trench with cement to just below the soil line, spreading it out with a trowel. This will be the base of your wall. Allow the cement to cure for three to four days.

4. Mix a fresh batch of cement to use as mortar. Spread a thin cement line along the base of the trench and lay bricks lengthwise along the line. You should have two rows of bricks, one behind the other. As you work, periodically check to ensure the bricks are level.

5. Place another thin layer of mortar on top of the bricks you laid and place another row of bricks on top. Use a small half-brick at the end, then stagger the second row of bricks so that it sits over, not directly on top of, the brick beneath it. Lay two more rounds in this manner and lay the cement for the next layer.

6. Place corrugated brick ties directly on top of the mortar on the next row. Space one tie every 12 inches. Cover the mortar and brick ties with another layer of brick.

7. Work in this manner, placing a brick tie every four rows, until the wall reaches the desired height. Then apply another layer of mortar.

8. Place the last row of bricks "head on," so that the short side of the brick faces you. You'll only need one row, because each brick will cover the two rows when it's laid "short side on." Work along this row until you have placed all bricks and allow the wall to dry. The mortar will cure over several days, binding your new garden brick wall.

Tips & Warnings

• Construct your brick and masonry wall on a warm day when no rain is forecast.

• To figure out how many bricks you need to buy, use the brick construction calculator available at www.csgnetwork.com. By entering the size of your planned brick wall and the size of the bricks, you can obtain a number. A standard-sized brick is 8 by 2 1/4 inches.

References

• Better Homes and Gardens: Builsing a Brick Wall
• Greenfingers: Making a Simple Wall
• Dulley: How to Lay a Brick Walk

Resources

• CSG Network: Brick Construction Calculator