I think you're on track thinking that a retaining wall (or several small ones) is your best bet. There are several tutorials on the web about how to build them properly, or you could pay a little more to have a landscaping company do it for you. I'd like to do something similar in our backyard where we have some nasty erosion problems, but it's just not in my budget right now for the scale that I need.

Sammy will be interested to read the suggestions you receive. Most of the soil erosion issues I've worked with have either been farm/ranch related or around my current property. I have used ground covers along with terraces ect with very good results. But since you don't want a ground cover that eliminates the options a great deal. At work my station is on the side of a hill. And there are several large bare areas. We have fought erosion issues for 30 years. We have finally went to the level, flat terrace type plan and use rocks. On the edges it takes large boulders to stay in place during large runoffs. Around the fence edges we use straw bales to keep the water from washing canyons under the fence. Again something that probably won't work for you. You might consider the flat terrace system with the sides down to the next level lined with rocks. Looking forward to how you address it and what methods you use. Without a solid ground cover or covering with gravel ect I see no way you won't have some erosion. Jay

You may want to plant a winter cover crop to prevent erosion until you have time to build your terrace. Winter wheat or oats would be easy and cheap.

Here are some suggestions. No vines anywhere. Affordable. Natural.

Plant low growing drought hardy native grasses. Seeds can be purchased in bulk amounts for reasonable expense, direct sowed or started as plugs. They are easy, low/no maintenance, no mowing and no irrigating once established. These will hold your soil.

1. Mexican Feather Grass- seeds will germinate this fall into spring (needs cool temps), it self-sows (rather aggressively) and holds the soil. Also beautiful cool season grass offering seed heads that catch the light all summer. No mowing

2. Blue Grama Grass- seeds will germinate in spring and is a short grass good for erosion control. Short grass with very decorative seedheads, re-seeds and will establish itself. No mowing. Has shallow roots so it catches the water and prevents runoff.

3. Silver King Artemsia. Good for very dry ground, spreads by runners underground and has very attractive silver foliage. Never needs watering.

4. Russian Sage. The common variety suckers underground and needs no irrigation. Blooms all summer, about 4 feet tall and gets bigger every year.

5. Little Bluestem. Upright praire grass with very blue foliage, deep roots, does very well on slopes, needs no mowing. Will naturalize.

6. Autumn Sage. Good drought hardy plant, low shrub with red flowers in spring and fall.

7. Fringed Sage. low growing sage that needs good drainage. Nice silver/blue coloring, goes good with native grasses.

8. Various native plants mixed in. Choose low growing drought hardy ones like Helianthus varieties, Purple Coneflower, Dogweed, Desert Marigolds, Liatris, etc.

9. Sideoats Grama Grass - good, uniform, low mounding grass with seeds most of the summer that catch the light. Summer, fall, winter interest.

A good seed source is Plants of the Southwest.

MEXICAN FEATHER GRASS

ARTEMESIA

BLUE GRAMA GRASS

MEXICAN FEATHER GRASS WITH ARTEMSIA

BLUE GRAMA IN WINTER

Those are beautiful. EVen if I do end up having to put in rocks, those plants will make all the difference.

Thank you so much for the suggestions, the pictures, and the seed source.

Sammy

Cactusgarden, this could save me a ton of money. I checked out the site, and intend to order some seeds.

I prefer your ideas to all rocks, and it looks like large rocks could even compliment the grasses.

Sammy, I have ordered so many seeds from Plants of the SW. Last fall I started adding native grasses which are easy from seed and so pretty. Most everything I am growing withstood the drought with very little trouble. The Muhly grasses are harder to get germination but are very much worth the effort.

Santa Rosa Gardens sells many native grasses and has good sales each spring and fall. I ordered quite a few last fall. I also ordered a few from High Country Gardens. You can build over time and add special things.

I started Desert Marigolds a few years ago and these have naturalized. Blue foliage with yellow flowers all spring, summer into December, like perfect bouquets. They would do well on your slope. My property is on a slope, but not as steep. I wish I had a slope exactly like you have, there are so many drought loving plants you could grow there without worrying about drainage.

You could also add cold hardy agaves which would look great with the grasses and do very well in that situation for a touch of exotic and good texture combinations. Large rocks would look fantastic. The choices of plants is endless because you have that perfect drainage and can grow things otherwise impossible. Cold hardy agaves include: Parryi, Harvardiana, shindaggers and a couple others. Check out High Country Gardens for cold hardy ones and other drought loving plants. We have a cactus show here in OKC each spring and you can buy the agaves there and Kelly Grummons at Cold Hardy Cactus online sells them too.

When I saw the photo, I just went crazy and thought "Oh wow, let me plant that!" Its perfect for the kinds of plants I love and it looks like you have it all ready for planting by clearing it off. This could be a whole lot of fun to do. The money, yep, its cheap. Many of the grasses establish well in one season and then its just low maintenance. I have run out of room here and need a bigger area just for the grasses because I wish I could do drifts.

We did river rock gravel and its fine now but the first season we had some trouble with runoff and I had to go retrieve some of it in the wheel barrow. I think you would need some heavy rough edged gravel other than river rock to keep it from sliding downhill until its established.

Here a some photos of the plants I have that I grew mostly from seeds I got at Plants of the Southwest. The yellow flowers are the Desert Marigolds, bitterweed and dogweed, there is a Silver King Artemsia by the wall and a Rabbit Bush, the pink ones are Flame Flowers a large Russian Sage by the street and various grasses, native "weeds" and cactus. This was shot in August in the middle of the drought.