Hmmm I have a hard time following these threads, I don't always know
how to follow a path.... I am at UMAB, School of Medicine.
Dry laid stone will likely hold up much better than a mortared
wall in this climate. For one thing the dry laid wall has some "give"
to it and won't be as likely to heave and crack (from the frost) as
the mortared one will. The dry laid wall also allows the release of
hydrolic pressure that will insidiously topple a mortared wall. Of
course you can make an elaborate foundation for the mortared wall and
then it will be perfect, and expensive! I assume cost is a factor! Of
course buying stone is expensive also, but I scavenge mine.
I find that the work of laying the stone is fun, rewarding, and
addictive! It takes time to puzzle out the exact hows etc. but I do it
for relaxation so that is OK. I have seen many mortared walls fail
with time (I was a carpenter for 15 years), they are expensive to fix.
If a dry laid wall fails it is "easy" to take apart and repair.....
Enough for now, I need to get back to studying.... If I can be of help
my email is somewhere in this thread, or I check this out every couple
of days.