Dry stone walls to enhance the terraces
In the previous article on dry stone walls ( Part 1 ) we discussed the main characteristics of the environmental sustainability of their dry construction; with this article we will go deeper into the properties of “confinement” of the same.
All seasons are suitable for the rebuilding of dry stone walls; however, autumn-winter is the most suitable period, both for the greater free time and for the lesser physical effort due to the temperatures
Dry stone walls from all over the world have been on the Unesco cultural heritage list since 2018. Among the reasons: they demonstrate the harmonious relationship between men and nature, prevent landslides and floods, fight erosion and desertification. Motivations that add to the important increase, through the terracing, of the useful agricultural area, and to equip it with support structures, also to move easily on the land which, otherwise, would be too steep.
Dry stone walls have a specific function in the landscape and ecosystem and constitute a very important ecological niche.
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The dry-stone wall, raised with the stones removed from the ground, as well as delimiting the boundaries, assumes an environmental role of considerable importance because it represents a real "ecological corridor" which allows the transmission of a microfauna rich in insects, small reptiles and amphibians that operate spontaneously, in synergy with human agriculture, to maintain a healthy and parasite-free environment. The interstices become its home and hiding place.
The dry stone walls, with the spontaneous vegetation that grows between the stones or close to the walls themselves, constitute an important ecosystem. In their correspondence a particular microclimate is created, favorable to Mediterranean plants which can thus, thanks to the greater availability of water, overcome the summer crisis.
There are decidedly numerous botanical species that grow along the dry stone walls. They range from the most common brambles to bushes of yellow sage or thyme, but we also find mastic, myrtle, alaternum and thorny oak. Then there are the rose of S. Giovanni, the blackthorn, the reseda alba and the common fennel with the pungent asparagus and numerous graminaceous plants.
The greatest wealth of botanical species can be found among the cracks in the stones covered with moss and lichen, true pioneers of the complex and fascinating life that pulsates in the dry stone wall. The substrate that develops from the combined action of lichens and mosses then allows the birth of other higher plants.
Border dry stone wall restored using the pre-existing stones and respecting the original construction typology
In the fissures, where the dew condenses, you can meet various aspleniaceae such as rust grass, as well as the navel of Venus, the mural draba, numerous scrofulariaceae and speedwells. Lianose species, such as ivy, and local sarsaparilla, often cover the oldest dry stone walls, offering shelters to the nests of numerous species of passerines with their fronds rich in foliage.
It is therefore essential, especially in the restoration of partially collapsed dry stone walls, to take into account these ecological and landscape functions.
From a landscape point of view, dry stone walls are of fundamental importance in protecting the soil, the dry stone wall functions as a large filter if it is used to create terraces which constitute a large regulating system for the water flowing on the slopes of the slopes. Its use for the construction of terraces was the idea on which the technique of "filtering bridles" in hydraulics is based, with the aim of reducing hydrostatic pressure.
Furthermore, the presence of dry stone walls in arid areas helps not only to combat soil erosion but also plays an important role in the fight against desertification and soil salification. In various parts of the world, in fact, stone is used by cultures that have had to adapt to survive the scarcity of water, as a surface for collecting water. Not only in the areas of China, New Zealand and Africa and the Middle East, but also in the Mediterranean, for example in the south of Spain and Italy, dry masonry structures are found which are built with specific criteria to be used as "collectors" of wind humidity which is captured and literally squeezed out thanks to the arrangement of stones laid dry with large interstices which also act as a condensation surface. In this case man does nothing but support a process that has occurred naturally since the dawn of time and which he has observed and tried to reproduce. In fact, dew appears naturally on the ground and on vegetation.
When the water vapor contained in the air comes into contact with surfaces made cool by the radiation, the dew condenses into drops of water.
Of fundamental importance for these uses is the type of stone used in the construction of dry stone walls which must not contain stones with smooth surfaces to collect condensation and stones with porous surfaces capable of collecting water and gradually transferring it to the ground.
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