A drywall raised bed is neither grouted nor concreted. Instead, the stones are stacked loosely on top of each other. The dry raised bed can be set up in one morning and dismantled just as quickly - in contrast to a mortared wall, which often also requires a solid foundation.
What is a drywall raised bed?
A drystone raised bed is built without jointing or concreting by loosely stacking rectangular stones on top of each other. It offers quick assembly and dismantling times, stability and nesting opportunities for insects and small animals when certain materials such as nesting boxes or perforated bricks are integrated.
Materials needed
For a raised bed with external dimensions of 160 x 100 centimeters and a height of 80 centimeters you need the following materials:
- any rectangular stones, at least 24 centimeters long, 11 centimeters high and 11 centimeters deep
- Generally prefer larger stones - the more stable the raised bed will be
- Weed fleece
- rabbit wire
- as desired: nesting boxes, insect nesting boxes, perforated bricks and nesting stones in a rectangular shape (for insects and other small animals)
How to build
First, the floor plan of the raised bed is marked on the ground. Then dig a pit at least 10 centimeters deep and remove all plants, especially existing root weeds such as field bindweed, groundweed, couch grass or horsetail. Firm the soil well, for example with a vibrating tamper borrowed from the equipment rental company. Now fill in a thick layer of gravel and gravel - this serves as drainage - and compact this layer carefully. Now build the wall by carefully stacking stone by stone so that everything is stable and nothing wobbles. The stones in a row should always be offset from the previous row - so that they are never joint on joint. Finally, lay the weed fleece (€19.00 on Amazon) and the rabbit wire.
Pay attention to the tilt angle
The earth mass inside a raised bed of this size is limited, so that the earth pressure on the bed walls remains within an acceptable range. In this case, you can safely do without an angle of inclination (sometimes referred to as a “run-up”). Instead, build the raised bed border vertically. For larger beds, a greater wall thickness (depth) ensures more stability.
Tip
While building the raised bed border, you can integrate a whole range of nesting aids into the bed walls. It's not just wild bees that are happy about drilled hardwood discs or blocks or perforated clay tiles. On the other hand, bumblebees, spiders, lizards, beetles and, in winter, butterflies feel comfortable in smaller cavities or gaps in walls. Wood shavings and leaves, on the other hand, are the perfect nesting material for ladybirds and earwigs.