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If you are interested in contracting, building or repairing retaining walls, do some research or seek professional help prior to diving right in to the process. The intent of mentioning retaining walls in this blog is not to explain their constrution but to showcase their merit and the wide range of materials and styles that can be used to deal with grade changes and slopes. Well constructed retaining walls can be a wonderful asset in a landscape where changes in elevation are a consideration and/or desired. Proper placement of these walls can create level terrace areas for planting, minimize erosion and certainly eliminate dangerous maintenance areas where using a mower or string trimmer is frought with peril and potential injury. I've seen as many good (sound) retaining walls as I've seen failing (unsound) walls and the difference, while sometimes related to materials (and certainly $), really is commesurate with understanding the forces involved with RETAINING soil and significant weight. We can all purchase the materials (lumber, railroad ties, pre-fab block, flagstone, etc.) to build a wall but understand that when a wall goes over 3' tall, there are more considerations and the dynamics of proper construction increase exponentially. The third photo down shows a timber wall that I walk my dogs by every day and have observed the continued "battle" that will eventually conclude with that wall failing and needing to be replaced. While some of these walls are quite fancy and expensive, the overall design intent and function is identical.
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3 comments:
Thanks for the compliments! We have a great garden that has developed with community support and many, awesome volunteers.
Sincerely,
Mark
great blog post! I love the pictures it gives me so idea about what to do in my little garden at home.
retaining walls
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