Steep backyard slope toward home - zone 7 - need help

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

I am looking for some insight regarding my backyard.

we are first-time homeowners an purchased the home without much thought for the backyard (big mistake, I know). The hill was covered, and we recently had it cleared - as shown in the pictures.

we do not have the budget to terrace the upper level. It is very steep, and had some tree stumps that I recently had ground.

we know that the lower wall needs to be redone.

that said, I need some insight on what to do with the hill. It is rough soil (clayish with rock), it points to the east, and is in the sun almost all day.

Lastly, we are located in central Arkansas, zone 7. Any and all insight or advice is greatly appreciated.

Comments (5)

Suzi AKA DesertDance So CA Zone 9b
8 years ago
I'm in the wrong zone to give you advice, but since you can't afford to terrace, you need to plant something to help with erosion during rains. I live on a very steep slope, but the house is at the top. There are homes below us, so we do our best to prevent our hillside wreaking havoc on the neighbors.

Junipers will help with erosion, as will trailing rosemary. Not sure what grows in your zone, but you should ask your nursery for advice on shrubs and groundcovers with wide spreading roots that will help with that slope.

Good luck to you!
Elizabeth zone 7 Upstate SC
8 years ago
Another vote for juniper. They spread umbrella style. Many municipalities plant them on highway embankments because of their anti-erosion effectiveness and low maintenance. You would have to mulch between the plants and keep weeds out while they are growing. Blue rug, Parson's, Mint Julep, Nick's Compact and Grey Owl are a few good varieties. Research them all to pick the best height for you. The nicest one, imho, is Blue rug, It is only about 6-8 inches tall but spreads almost eight feet wide. To save even more money buy the one gallon containers. They will grow pretty fast. So it's an economical plant! Other than to remove dead branches they don't need trimming. Best of luck with your slope. I don't think you made a mistake. I think it's a diamond in the rough! So many possibilities!
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I'm doing some second-guessing here, but it seems that you must get stormwater from the back yard to the front. Since the former french drain is non-functional, I'm wondering if you can change it to a slot-covered trough drain that collects water at the critical places and then directs it via underground pipe to an outlet somewhere toward the front yard... ?? Since you won't be hiring a hydraulic engineer, I would lean toward keeping it oversized... thinking about those big storms and the fact that drains tend to collect "stuff" and become clogged. 4" pipe is too small. 6" or a pair of them would be better. (If you can figure a way to keep it above ground, even better.) The exact details of how you constructed it would depend much on how the plan shapes up and what else you're constructing. Being as it's your own yard and your doing it on the cheap, you might even consider constructing a removable slotted grate made of treated wood. It wouldn't last like other materials, but you could get a few years out of it. In regards to planting on the hill, I'd be in favor of getting rid of all grass, thinking it's not fun to maintain, creating instead a solid small flowering tree canopy that would be limbed up with a high ceiling. Below it, a single, solid groundcover. Trees that come to mind would be redbud or saucer magnolia, with a preference for the former. 5 trees in a double staggered row (3 at back, 2 at front would do it.) A super cheap groundcover would be virginia creeper as you can find it everywhere and start your own cuttings. It's pest free and grows about 12" tall. You'd be able to incorporate other plants at edges, once some shade is up and running, and in the sunny areas.
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Juliann, I'll post a site from the UK that has pictures of various types of gardens. This link goes to their Cottage Garden which they say is "contrived to look uncontrived". There are many other types of gardens there that might provide inspiration. Which plants you choose depends on which climate zone you are in. I'm in zone 3 so am somewhat limited in what I can grow. I'll post a pic of what I call my wild bird garden. It's an area in my large garden that has the birdfeeder and birdbath. I allow the flowers to go to seed for the birds so they self-seed. This area has changed over many years altho I initially seeded shasta daisies (the butterflies love them) and yarrow and planted a few established perennials. The yarrow seeds I planted were a mix of red, pink, and white, but the white resembles the wild yarrow we have so we pull it out and it's mostly now only tones of pinks and red. There are also Lamb's Ears because they seed all over my garden but I leave them in this wild area (the bees love them). There are a few other plants, a pink mallow that's 'weedy' but it fills the space and is quite pretty and we also have several lilacs here. Near that area there is also a drift of common old irises which we've allowed to spread. They are in the lower part of the rockery and I will eventually weed some of them out as the bloom time is not very long. If I were deliberately planting a wildflower garden I would not buy a wildflower mix as there could be invasive plants in it. I planted a mix about 14 years ago and still have Dame Hesperis (Dame's Rocket) altho pull out many every year and try to dead-head them ASAP before they seed. It's quite a weed in warmer climates. I would choose seeds of plants I like that are hardy but not invasive and mix them together. Another option is to plant in swaths with various plants and grasses hardy to your area. Keep in mind the moisture requirements of the plants as you decide. The area where I have shastas, mallow, and yarrow needs little watering and only a spring weeding so is easy care. Here is a link that might be useful: The Garden House
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Suzi AKA DesertDance So CA Zone 9b
8 years ago
Funny thing is, we are planning a trip to Canada next year, and I discovered a restaurant in Toronto that uses pine needles to smoke their mussels, so this sent me on a web search. Pine needles AND junipers are edible. Maybe not so tasty, but they do add flavor with no side effects. Just an idea. You get a double whammy with Juniper. OH, and they do distill gin from the berries of the juniper....... Did I say that?
Elizabeth zone 7 Upstate SC
8 years ago
Fascinating!
User
8 years ago
d keith,

The idea of planting on a hill is both to prevent erosion, which is really important, and to look really nice.

Full sun, zone 7, great for erosion, crape myrtle, buy more of them. They are wonderful, they have strong roots, you already have one there, and will provide a little bit of shade, which most plants will appreciate since you have sun all day. They will be on sale now, so buy more crape myrtles, they are anchors.

Buy a chase tree, gorgeous blue flowers, no maintaince, drought tolerant, loves sun. Get at least one chaste tree. When you plant it, add some composted cow manure in the whole since you have clay, for the chaste tree.

Evergreen magnolia is wonderful for a hill! Look for them at big box stores or nurseries now. Their roots spread out, and they grow great on hills. They are easy to care for, love sun and are evergreen. Get at least one of those, you will love the fragrant flowers in spring.

The reason for the trees is important, they are the first line of defense against the pouring rain. It first hits the trees, they provide cover. Then you look for shrubs, a medium cover, like roses, which are wonderful and hardy, and also love the heat and sun. So buy some medium sized roses. You can use a soaker hose to water them. Also ornamental grasses are beautiful, and sort of medium size. Grasses need water though, so if you put out a soaker hose, include them in the path.

The junipers are a wonderful suggestion also. there are ground cover junipers, you can plant them here and there, they are evergreen, which is good, they are ground covers, so they will also help the ground stay where it is.

St. Johns Wart, sedum, ajunga, daylilies, little spirea shrubs, just a few suggestions as to some plants that you can plant around on the hill and will take fast.

Good Luck to you.

Steep backyard slope toward home - zone 7 - need help

Comments (5)

Suzi AKA DesertDance So CA Zone 9b

Elizabeth zone 7 Upstate SC

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Suzi AKA DesertDance So CA Zone 9b

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