Create Beauty In Your Sloped Backyard

Building your home on a hillside can afford you beautiful, even panoramic views. However, this can create an issue in your actual yard. A sloped yard presents problems of drainage and just plain landscaping. You may despair of planting your sloped yard, but this can make the problem worse because of soil erosion. Instead, use your landscaping to complement the hillside.

Shrub Border

If your slope is gentle, it may be sufficient to use shrubs to anchor the soil. In this case, you'll choose low-lying bushes. Birds and Blooms suggests verbena, dogwood, dwarf fothergilla and goldflame spirea for low-lying bushes. None of these bushes grow over five feet tall, and most finish at under three feet. You can use these all over the slope or as an anchor at the bottom for different plantings.

Retaining Wall

For a steeper yard, a retaining wall may be necessary. At its most basic, a retaining wall is simply a wall that holds back the soil. However, you have numerous material options, such as stone, brick, and wood. It's even possible to use mid-sized boulders as a retaining wall. Concrete block is a durable, low-cost option. You can have the concrete covered with a veneer that resembles brick or stone. Once your wall is in place, you simply landscape accordingly on the plateau it creates.

Terraces

Speaking of plateaus, another option to a single retaining wall is a succession of terraces. In this case, the contractors create a series of low walls to hold back the soil. For landscaping, you then have numerous small plateaus to design. You should utilize plants with some visual consistency. For example, choose a target color palette and repeat it all the way up the slope. Another option is to repeat shapes within the plantings.

Resting Spot

Whether you choose a single retaining wall or a series of terraces, you may want to incorporate a resting spot. After all, you want to enjoy your view from the outdoors. Creating a surface for the resting spot can be as simple as tamping down the soil, or you can install pavers. Either way, plan to place at least a table and chair or a bench on your resting spot. It's possible to add a pergola for shade, too.

Seat Wall

In that vein, it may work to incorporate a seat wall into your design. A seat wall is just that – a retaining wall designed with a built-in bench for sitting. You can have this as part of your tall wall or as one of your terraces. This is also useful if your retaining wall borders a patio since it adds the additional seating.

Tame your sloped yard for both beauty and utility. For more ideas and help with accomplishing these projects, talk with a professional landscaping company, like Quality Lawn & Landscape.

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