The herb spiral is a special, three-dimensional bed that enables the cultivation of various herbs even in the smallest of spaces. Due to the spiral arrangement of the building, its north-south orientation and the different substrates, many location requirements can be met. Here you will find building instructions for a herb spiral made of natural stone, for which there are two different methods.
How can I build my own herb spiral out of stones?
It is possible to build your own herb spiral out of stones by either raising a mound of earth and placing a stone spiral on top of it or by building a spiral stone tower. Use natural stones such as brick, field stone, limestone or sandstone for your herb spiral.
The best time to build a herb spiral
It's best to build the herb spiral in spring, because you can then start planting straight away and harvest extensively in the summer. However, it would be ideal if the freshly poured soil can settle for another week or two, especially if it has just rained a lot. If necessary, you can add fresh soil before planting.
The ideal size
Ideally, the base area of the herb spiral is around two meters in diameter. This size arises if you assume a width of the spirally rising bed of 60 centimeters. The edging stones also take up a lot of space and should not be too small so that they do not disappear completely under the vegetation later. Furthermore, the spiral of this size can be easily reached from all sides up to the center. For larger spirals, simply place a few stepping stones in the outer area.
Various construction methods
There are two different ways to build a herbal spiral, both of which we will introduce to you here.
Building a herbal spiral on a mound of earth
This variant is probably the easiest to build, in which a mound of earth is first raised. Only then is the stone spiral laid out. Proceed as follows:
- Measure the required area in diameter.
- Dig out the top layer of soil to the depth of a spade.
- Fill the hole with stones or loose, permeable soil.
- Now build a 50 centimeter high hill made of gravel, rubble and earth.
- Now place the stone spiral on top.
- Use brick, field stone, limestone or sandstone, clinker etc.
- Finally, fill in the planting substrate.
- This layer should be between 15 and 25 centimeters thick.
- In the upper area, nutrient-poor, sandy soil is filled, in the middle and lower area, nutrient-rich soil.
Building a spiral stone tower
Another method is to build a wall that rises spirally to form a tower, which can be built using drywall or mortar. This is particularly possible with clinker or cuboid natural stones, which can be easily layered on top of each other.
Tip
You can also create very beautiful herb spirals with the help of gabions.
