"Sam" wrote:
Sorry, dg, but you are wrong on this one. A 330mm blockwork wall will
never be strong enough to retain 3m of soil, even with no surcharge on
the retained side, no water etc.

There's an awful lot of assertions in this thread.

Outside my back door is an earth bank, sloping
backwards at about 10 degrees to the vertical.
There is an un-reinforced concrete footing which
is 1.5ft high and about the same deep, followed
by 3.5ft of dry stone walling, maybe 8" deep. The
remaining 6ft of bank is not retained by any structure.

In total, I am guessing that this is considerably less
support than a 330mm blockwork wall, and it has
all been in place for about 80 years.

My point is that no-one can make absolute assertions
about what is or isn't sufficient to retain an earth bank
unless they investigate further. The best advice is to
consult someone who knows what they are talking
about, and is prepared to guarantee their conclusions.
It doesn't help slagging off other people on here.

Just my two cents,
Al