Hugelkultur herb spiral - what kind of brick mortar

On my garden plan is a herb spiral. I want to build this soon and have it ready for spring planting. I have a bunch of odd logs from my neighbour - ones that are awkward if your end goal is logs to burn. I thought they would make a good core for the herb spiral making it a kind of hugelkultur herb spiral. My next resource is old bricks. (I was going to use field stones but I don’t have enough). I’ve found dozens of old and sometimes broken bricks when I dug out a basement window well. There’s also a badly laid path which is mostly brick. This is my second source. And the third source is the path leading to the front door which is very conventional and doesn’t exist in my grand plan. it uses modern paving blocks which i don’t like but could be a good foundation, below the soil and out of sight.

So how do I stick the bricks together? In the past, I’d have gone to the box store and bought a big bag of ready mix mortar and set to. Is there a better permies option? I have zero access to clay, so I’m thinking that rules out any kind of cob.

Have you considered dry-stacking? It would allow for better aeration, drainage, and budget extension...

Carla Burke wrote:Have you considered dry-stacking? It would allow for better aeration, drainage, and budget extension...

Great question and I did rule it out, but maybe a little hastily. My main concern is what happens over time as the logs break down? If the spiral was a rigid structure, then I could just add mulch and the integrity would remain. If it’s dry stacked then how long before it just slumps into a pile of loose bricks? Or doesn’t that matter and the bricks are just there to provide structure before the herbs and their roots take on that role?

My thought was that if stacked carefully enough, like the dry-stacked fence rows, it would likely hold up, unless you're throwing stuff into it like a pitcher throwing fastballs, which I didn't think you'd be doing, if any plants remained in, long term, like perennials, and I'd guess you'd be adding compost  & mulch in small amounts, on a fairly regular basis, which would keep it full, and not crumbling in? My other thought was that if you try dry-stacking first, and don't like the results, it would be easy enough to re-do, later, whereas if you use mortar, and don't like it, that would be a bigger pain to redo.

I like the herb spiral from this thread:

https://permies.com/t/68883/permaculture-projects/keyhole-garden-summer-drought

Carla Burke wrote:My thought was that if stacked carefully enough, like the dry-stacked fence rows, it would likely hold up, unless you're throwing stuff into it like a pitcher throwing fastballs, which I didn't think you'd be doing, if any plants remained in, long term, like perennials, and I'd guess you'd be adding compost  & mulch in small amounts, on a fairly regular basis, which would keep it full, and not crumbling in? My other thought was that if you try dry-stacking first, and don't like the results, it would be easy enough to re-do, later, whereas if you use mortar, and don't like it, that would be a bigger pain to redo.

I would tend to agree. My sister has a pile of breeze blocks in one corner of her back yard, mortared together, *NO* idea what the builder was intending, and they look ugly to her. You're not planning to stay in this house long term, so I'd be inclined to make something like an herb spiral where the beauty and utility may be in the eyes of the beholder, easy for the next homeowners to remove if they decide they really want a fountain in that spot!

Well that was easy - dry stack it is!

Now I wonder if there’s a Badge Bit for this . . .

Edward Norton wrote:Well that was easy - dry stack it is!

Now I wonder if there’s a Badge Bit for this . . .

https://permies.com/wiki/99583/pep-earthworks/PEP-BB-earthworks-sand-stack

Yes. Dunno if it will qualify. 2ft tall and 4 ft long. Primarily rocks.

L. Johnson wrote:
https://permies.com/wiki/99583/pep-earthworks/PEP-BB-earthworks-sand-stack

Yes. Dunno if it will qualify. 2ft tall and 4 ft long. Primarily rocks.

Good thought, however, been there, done that!

permies.com/p/1590842

So I built my herb spiral . . . Phase one done.

As most of my ‘lawn’ is now chip, I had to remove some to get a level space to work in.



Then I gathered bricks from the path that runs down the otherside of the house. The path is right where my workshop will be.



I used a three foot off-cut and a 12 inch nail to roughly lay out the spirals first course. The planting bed is 12 inches wide.



Once I was happy with the snail shell layout, I started working up course by course and filling the bed with old logs.



Then I layered in container compost from last years potatoes and new chip as I built up. The wooden post is three feet high and the hose will be part of the sprinkler irrigation, when needed



And here it is at the end of the day with a 2ft diameter pond . . . There is a badge for that! Seal a tiny pond



I have stacked with a very slight inward lean. I’ll start growing some of the herbs over the winter from seed indoors. I’d love to fill lots of holes in the brick work with thyme.

I’ve top dressed with a final layer of wood chip. I’m sure over the winter it will sink a few inches so I can add a final layer of soil, plant and mulch with more chip.

Thanks for your help with this project. So glad I didn’t have to mix any mortar.

It looks gorgeous! Well done. Excellent use for used bricks - upcycling at its best.

Beautifully done, Edward!! I'm impressed!

Speedy work! You had quite a supply of bricks. It really does look good.

I also love the idea of thyme for the cracks. You could mix in some succulents here and there probably as well if that is something that appeals to you.

Looking forward to seeing your planting plan.

L. Johnson wrote:I also love the idea of thyme for the cracks. You could mix in some succulents here and there probably as well if that is something that appeals to you.

I was brave enough to try sedum and houseleek this year - both OK and quite palatable. They'd give a nice crunch in a salad as well as pretty flowers for the aesthetic.

Small sedumsource
I gather all sedum are edible, although some are more tasty than others, so you might want to try them first, or just choose the prettiest and let us know how they taste afterwards!

Thank you both. This was my kind of project - something I could complete in a single day, outside, with a very satisfying outcome.

I love succulents and have too many of them in the house. During lockdown I actually subscribed to a monthly succulent delivery service. Alas, I have no idea if any of them are hardy and most are now in big pots, all mixed in. They’re easy enough to propagate, so I should try and figure out what I have.

I had no idea you could eat sedum. I just thought it was something people grew on living roofs. I’ll definitely investigate as I was considering using it on the roof of my ‘yet to be built’ bike shed.

Love the work done here already.
When building the same I found it really kick's off quickly when the top layers of the hugel are made from a lasagna of poo and green matter with a little lime tossed in.
Just dig a little hole, line with some potting mix and plant ya herbs.
🙂

We’ll done! Thanks for the great pics. You’ve inspired me to build one. Yay!

Edward, your spiral herb bed is inspiring us for our community garden. I don’t see the pond. Is the bed 3’wide at widest point? What is the height? Thanks!