[Christ]

Originally Posted by dcb

I'm lost? How is wood a requirement with rammed earth?

There needs to be a pre-laid frame work to ram the earth to... it's the first thing covered in the article you sent me, but it's also a given... sand castles are small, hence don't need it, but a full sized house, prone to geological vibrations, etc, would need a framework beyond just packed mud.

Unless you're talking about packed mud bricks, stacking/sealing them, which is a different beast, and can be done, but is expensive when the mud isn't readily available. (Clay is the best mud to use for pack bricks.)