Basics in building a Herb Spiral bed

A Herb Spiral is simply a type of raised bed design whereby you mimic a sea shell on its side (birds eye view) by using rocks, bricks or any other strong material good enough to support the weight of the soils / composts and plants.

Herb Spiral Design / Cross Section

Why a herb spiral? Well, herbs do prefer drier conditions so, being raised and supported by stone / bricks etc. ensures good drainage in wet conditions, for those in drier areas, applying mulching techniques will prevent over drying!
A spiral configuration ensures the water runs down from the top plant all the way through to the bottom so water conservation is another point of this design.

Just before planting

Above you can get an idea how simple this design is, I really do not need to supply step by step instructions as this can just be observed in the above and upcoming pictures, there are also step by step instructions online or on youtube videos:

Example of placing the dry loving plants on top, with the wet tolerant varieties closer to the bottom

In the above image, the designer also made a small pond at the end of the water outlet to encourage wildlife (Frogs will predate pests, birds too and this could be a very needed source of water for bees on hot days!

They also look attractive! Anyone who has the space to do this … SHOULD !

Completed Herb Spiral example 2

Completed Herb Spiral example 1

Things to remember:

• Try reclaim / reuse materials such as old stones / building bricks for the walls, it is not necessary to go purchase new materials, plus, old materials look antique,
• Remember, design it to have a sloped face in the direction of your hemisphere’s sun (Southern Hemisphere should be North Facing whilst Northern Hemisphere should be South Facing),
• Plant the dry loving Herbs on top, the semi wet tolerant in the middle with the wet tolerant varieties at the bottom,
• You probably wont need to mulch much if you live in a reasonably wet area / climate, but will definitely need to mulch if in dry / hot conditions.