Question
Hello.  

I created a raised planting bed made of fieldstone found in our property (
from NJ, zone 6).  The bed is against the foundation of the house in 2 sides
(total length about 50 feet).  I just finished laying and stacking the field
stones when I found this website.  I did not put gravel under the stones.  The
bed is about 8-10 inches tall.

1) Do I need to take the wall apart  and lay gravel at the bottom?
2) Do I need to put gravel and landscaper's fabric behind the stones before I
fill it with dirt?  How many inches of gravel should I put?
3) The downspout of the gutter ends in the raised bed - I created a pool of
rocks around the downspout directing it to wall.  WIll this work or is there a
better alternative?
4) Is the next step just to fill it with dirt?

I am also planning on laying down flagstones for a glider bench.  Do I just out
them directly on the soil?  Aside from leveling the ground, are there
additional preparations?

Thanks you very much!  

Answer
Did you just lay the stonewall directly onto turf?  I think the previous questioner was going to build on top of existing Bermuda grass.

If the foundation is raised concrete, I don't think 8-10" of planter is going to matter all that much.  Here, where most homes are slab on grade, the lip, where the wall connects to the slab is only about 6- 8" above the soil line.  

What you do not want is dirt directly touching the wood/stucco/brick wall part of the house.  This gives moisture & termites a path into the wall cavity!!

I think that if the wall is dry-stack, it would drain pretty well, and you can leave it as-is.  If you mortared it together, then it won't drain as well, but you may be able to chisel holes every 5 to 19 feet at the base to give the water a place to "weep" out.

Sounds like your downspout drains directly into this new wall/planter.  Not the best situation, as it would increase the amount of water that needs to escape from this new planter. Not being able to see how you put it together, it is difficult to give you suggestions for a different configuration.  Having less water directed at the building's foundation is ALWAYS a good thing.

Since you have not filled your wall with dirt, and re-building the wall would be a royal pain, I would dig a shallow trench behind it, add perforated pipe & gravel and get it to drain out and away from the base of the wall...and maybe tie that downspout into the perf. pipe.  Just be sure it actually has a slope that drains the water away, and not just become a place for water to collect.  

This is called a 揊rench Drain? - here is how to build one:  http://www.easydigging.com/Drainage/installation_french_drain.html

Then you get to add the dirt!

Glider Bench/flagstone patio - laying stone directly onto the soil depends on the soil you have. IF it is heavy clay or loam, you'd be wise to add a base course of compacted rock or sand (3-4" deep), as this would help in leveling the pieces.  I have placed stone directly onto the ground, but where I live, there is a lot of decomposed granite which makes an awsome base.

Here is a website with good tips on this project:
http://landscaping.about.com/od/hardscapefences1/ht/flagstone_patio.htm

~M