What was the main building material for many peasant homes?

The story behind the answer

Timber was abundant, cheap, and workable with simple tools, so rural builders raised houses around wooden frames. Peasants could source poles from nearby woods and hedgerows, then weave wattle between the timbers and smear it with daub for walls, topping the frame with thatch. Stone demanded quarries, carts, and skilled masons, so it was largely reserved for churches, castles, and wealthier dwellings.

Materials did vary by region—stone or turf in treeless areas, full log houses in forested zones—but across much of medieval Europe the typical cottage was a timber skeleton with earthen infill. Such homes were quick to erect in communal “house-raisings,” easy to repair, and reasonably snug around a smoky central hearth.