No mortar, no problem.
This easy technique will help you build a stone wall quickly and painlessly.
A mortarless, or dry-set,stone wallimparts an old-style character to the landscape.
A well-built dry-set wall will last for years.
The first settlers in America built walls this way, and many of those walls are still standing today.
Besides not requiring mortar, a dry-set wall doesn’t need a footing.
It will flex as the earth moves due to freezing and thawing, but it won’t fall down.
You might have to cut the upper course of bondstones to length.
Be sure to batter the wall so the weight of the soil won’t push it out.
Step 1: Sort Stones
Sort the stones into size groups.
Set bondstones on both ends of the trench.
Using stones of different lengths, lay the front wythe (face) of the first course.
Place a bondstone every 4 to 6 feet.
Set the thinner edge of the stones in the center of the trench.
Continue laying the courses, choosing stones with the same thickness but a variety of lengths in each course.
Offset the joints of the previous course.
Cut stones if needed.
Reposition stones if necessary, and vary the width of the stones on alternate courses.
Every third course, set bondstones at 3-foot intervals.
Step 5: Lay Top Course
Choose the flattest, broadest stones for the top course.
Mortar the capstones in place if you like.
