Nosherwan Huma

John C Daley wrote:Nosherwan, I dont understand the language you used on the video discussing the retaining wall.
But can I ask if that is the most important works you can commence now?
Bricks will be just as difficult to obtain as rocks, but you mention a rock outcrop, can it be used for the retaining wall?

yes, that was Urdu language. I was just explaining where I want the retaining wall.
yes, that is the first thing I need to do, as the first thing I will be building will be the house near the corner of the plot and I need that area tidy-upped.
bricks are not difficult to obtain in this area, there are traditional clay brick kilns all around. the rock is not very solid so that can't be used as retaining wall. also it will be a lot of work to dig up and excavate the rock and then fill the gap with soil again, don't you think?

Attaching pictures of traditional clay brick kilns

Nancy Reading wrote: Would adobe bricks be a possibility for wall making? I'm thinking in a generally dry climate they could work reasonably well.

I don't think adobe bricks are feasible for retaining walls. they'll just melt away in the monsoon season! or am I missing something here?

Nancy Reading wrote:
I'm sorry I don't have sound on my computer so I didn't follow the videos well. If you can do proper videos rather than 'shorts' they usually auto-caption for me...

Ok i'll do that next time. but it was in urdu just explaining where I want the retaining wall.

Thank you, Hugo, Nancy and John for the responses and questions.

So, there are a couple of reasons I want to have a retaining wall there.
1. My boundary extends up till the road and I want to include that part in my plot so that I can have maximum usability of the plot
2. I want to fence these two sides of the plot for privacy as I plan to build the house near the corner of the plot, so, the retaining wall can act as the solid foundation on which I can add the fence.
3. Erosion control.

So if it was only erosion control then I would have definitely just added erosion control plants.
btw, there are other parts inside my plot where there are slopes as well and there I will definitely go for plants.

any suggestions?

ok so the first thing I need help with is that I need to make a retaining wall along the south and east sides of the plot.
as you can see, the plot is around 6 ft higher than the road level at the corner and tapers down to road level on each side.
So I am confused as to which type of retaining wall to make and the exact nitty gritties like wall thickness, how to back fill and what to back fill with. etc.
video https://youtube.com/shorts/6LjV9hwE7jM

we don't have stone at the site and bringing it in will be expensive so currently i'm leaning towards a brick retaining wall.

M Ljin wrote:It looks like the land there has experienced a lot of degradation! It will be a challenge to restore.

If it is not an industrial site is it possible that the contour formations indicate terraces that were farmed in previous times?

Which contour formations are you talking about? can you mark on one of the pictures?

This is potohar plateau region by the way, landscape in this area is naturally like this.

Here is a google explanation about this region:

The Potohar landscape is a rugged, ancient, and arid plateau in northeastern Punjab, Pakistan, characterized by undulating terrain, ravines, and eroded gullies. Situated between the Indus and Jhelum rivers, this 5,000-square-mile region features steep cliffs, rocky outcrops, and the dramatic Salt Range, offering a "Martian-like" aesthetic with immense, dramatic canyons, particularly near Chakwal.

Muhammad Irfan wrote:
Hi Nosherwan sb,
We are developing a similar permaculture farm on around 3 acre land near Lahore. Would love to connect and exchange ideas.
Irfan

nice to hear that! ma sha Allah!
sure! would love to connect.
dming you my number

so from the 2002 image, it can be seen that rocky bit goes right down the center of the plot. circled in yellow. where there is nothing growing even then.

above are the historical images of the site from the overall area and up close of my plot for the years:
2002, 2013, 2018 and 2023 respectively.

we (10 families together) bought the land in 2022 ( with each having their own plot) and started the earthworks in 2023