Editing Thatching (section)

{{Short description|Type of roof}}
{{Redirect|Thatch|the racehorse|Thatching (horse)|the aircraft maneuver|Thach weave|other uses|Thatch (disambiguation)}}
[[File:pub.williams.arp.750pix.jpg|thumb|right|A thatched [[public house|pub]] (The Williams Arms) at [[Wrafton]], [[North Devon]], [[England]]]]
'''Thatching''' is the craft of building a [[roof]] with dry vegetation such as [[straw]], [[Phragmites|water reed]], [[Cyperaceae|sedge]] (''[[Cladium mariscus]]''), [[Juncus|rushes]], [[Calluna|heather]], or [[palm branch]]es, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. Since the bulk of the vegetation stays dry and is densely packed—trapping air—thatching also functions as [[roof insulation|insulation]]. It is a very old roofing method and has been used in both [[tropical]] and [[temperate climates]]. Thatch is still employed by builders in developing countries, usually with low-cost local vegetation. By contrast, in some developed countries it is the choice of some affluent people who desire a rustic look for their home, would like a more ecologically friendly roof, or who have purchased an originally thatched abode.
[[File:87 - Machu Picchu - Juin 2009.jpg|thumb|Inside view of an [[Inca]] roof in one of the few reconstructed buildings of [[Machu Picchu]]]]