How Do I Build a Dry Stacked Fieldstone Wall?

Insert stakes into the ground to mark the area where you want to install the freestanding wall. Wind string around a corner stake and extend it to the others. Measure the length and width of the area to determine the number of fieldstones you need.

Separate the fieldstones into piles according to their shape and size. Collect the largest fieldstones in one pile and the smaller ones in another to save time and labor when stacking the stones to form a wall.

Dig an 8-inch-deep trench along the string using a shovel. Keep the trench slightly wider than the base of the desired dry stacked wall. Check that the trench is level, and add or remove soil as required. Tamp the base of the trench with the back of a shovel to firm the soil and provide a strong footing for the stones.

Spread crushed limestone or gravel into the trench until level with the surrounding soil. Level the top of the crushed material with a length of scrap lumber.

Place a large fieldstone on its flat side over the gravel footing, at a corner of the trench. Gently push the stone or tap it with a mallet to set it in place over the gravel. Place another large stone flush against it over the gravel. Continue the process of installing fieldstones until you complete the first course. Because the gravel foundation is level and the stones are more or less identical in size, the first course will be somewhat level.

Lay a smaller fieldstone over the first course, laying it on its flat side. If necessary, break a section of a stone with a chisel and sledgehammer. Continue the process of laying stones for the second course, and all subsequent rows, until your wall reaches the desired height. Check the height of the forming wall after every course to determine how many more courses you need to lay until you reach the required height.

Insert tiny stones to fill the gaps between fieldstones. The filler stones need to be a size that fills the gaps between the larger stones.