Of course, you can also build your herb spiral out of stones - but wood is an equally suitable material as, in contrast to solid walls, it is reversible and therefore also suitable for rented gardens. In addition, wood blends into the garden very quickly and looks like it has always been there.
How do I build a herb spiral out of wood?
To build a herb spiral out of wood, you need weather-resistant types of wood such as larch, Douglas fir, sweet chestnut or robinia. Dig an area about 10cm deep, fill it with gravel and sand, create a cone-shaped rubble core and insert spiral-shaped boards covered with pond liner into the ground before filling and planting the spiral.
Which types of wood are suitable for a herb spiral?
However, not all types of wood are suitable for building a herb spiral. Softwoods in particular, such as spruce or birch, are cheap to buy, but they rot very quickly. For this reason, you should use the initially more expensive but significantly more weather-resistant species such as larch, Douglas fir, sweet chestnut or oak. The most weather-resistant wood in Central Europe is robinia, a very dense and heavy wood. Robinia wood is the first choice when it comes to buildings with direct contact with the earth. Willow weave is also interesting for building a herb spiral, but requires special protection against moisture.
Wood protection against rotting
Wood rots very quickly if it is not processed appropriately, especially if it is exposed to external weather influences and constant moisture through direct contact with the earth. Various wood protection measures can prevent or slow down this process, both structurally and chemically. The boards used for the herb spiral should be lined with pond liner where they come into contact with the soil. However, you should avoid applying chemical wood preservatives because their toxic ingredients pass into the herbs - and from there into your body.
Build, fill and plant a herb spiral made of wood
You can build a simple herb spiral made of wood as follows:
- First dig out the measured area about ten centimeters deep.
- Fill with gravel and sand.
- In the middle there is a cone-shaped layer of building rubble.
- Now insert boards or planks oiled with wood protection glaze (€59.00 at Amazon) into the ground in a snail-shaped twist.
- The rubble cone should be exactly in the middle.
- Cover the boards with pond liner up to the later filling level.
- Now fill in gravel, sand, gravel and substrate depending on the location.
- Finally, plant the spiral.
Tip
A complete herb spiral includes a small pond or water trough. However, this should be as far away from the wood as possible.
