[Cob] Straw's Out. How About Palm Leaves?

[Patrick Newberry]

If one doesn't have straw and ends up building with earth only, I
believe that the shape of the building can help as well. E.G a rounded
structure would stand a better chance than a square structure. Thus most
of hut type mud building I saw where round. 

Pat


<snip>
There are earthen structures all over the world built without straw, 
however, if you don't find some sort of fiber with reasonable tensile 
strength to include in your mix in significant quantities, the odds of 
some or all of your structure coming down in the next earthquake go 
way up.
</snip>