How to Build Low Rock Fence Terraces
Terraces have been used since ancient times to make use of land on steep hillsides. Mediterranean cultures used terraces to plant grapes and other crops. American Indians built terraces for houses and gardens. The Inca culture of Peru built massive farms with terraces. Oriental hillsides were covered with terraces for rice and other crops. So it is no wonder the practice has survived into today's landscaping. You can build terraces simply to hold a slope and keep it from washing, for steps, or for decorative or garden plantings. The techniques are similar. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Tape measure
- Wood stakes
- Tall stake or pole
- Builder's twine
- Shovel
- Hand tamper
- Gravel
- Stones
- Mortar (optional)
Instructions
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1
Measure the length of the slope with a tape measure and calculate the degree of slope, Set a stake at the top of the hill and a taller stake or pole at the bottom with a line stretched between. Measure the height of the string at the bottom and use that with the length to calculate the slope. A 33 percent grade, for instance, would be a drop of 1 foot for every 3 feet of length.
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2
Plan how many terrace levels you will need and how high each needs to be to cover the slope. Decide how you want the terraces to look -- you can cover the same space with several long terraces with 2-foot walls or shorter terraces with 1-foot walls. Consider how the space in the terrace will be used, covered with grass, planted in shrubs or filled with roses and other garden flowers. The type of planting on the terrace will affect the look and size.
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3
Outline the terrace walls with wood stakes and builder's twine. Make them straight or curved to conform to the terrain. Dig a trench with a shovel at least twice the depth of the stone you will use. Compact the soil in the trench firmly with a hand tamper. Put down a layer of gravel and compact it with the tamper. The gravel layer should end low enough that at least half of the first layer of rock will be below ground level.
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4
Stack stones in the trench in accordance with the type of stone. Use brick stack for stones of similar size and shape; this style positions stones side by side with ends overlapping so joints do not fall together. Place stones so the wall slopes back slightly on walls more than two stones high. Make a structural stack where wall strength is needed, decreasing the size of stones with each course. Use max stack on shallow slopes, with big edges of base rocks forward and other courses set back slightly. Structural and max stack work with stones of varying dimensions.
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5
Build mortared short walls on very steep slopes where drainage will be an issue. Prepare the base with gravel and add a layer of concrete over it to set the first course. Mortar stones on bottoms and backs as you work up; either let the mortar show or place it under the back side of the stone to hold it but conceal the mortar from a frontal view.
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