We just bought a house that has this sloped backyard, and I would love to turn much of it into a native garden. But I’m still pretty new to gardening, so the slope is Intimidating™️ (these pictures make the slope look a little flatter than it is in person).
Most of what I’m seeing online suggest making terraces. But that seems like quite a lot of landscaping for someone like me who has 0 idea what they’re doing.
Any tips on how I might go about putting a native garden without terracing/intense landscaping?
by freckles-on-a-ginger
6 Comments
Just plant lots of flowers 🤷♀️
It doesn’t have to be perfect right away
Funny that you should post about this. I just read this article. It may offer some useful tips. [https://www.gardenista.com/posts/ask-experts-what-to-plant-steep-slope/](https://www.gardenista.com/posts/ask-experts-what-to-plant-steep-slope/)
I also live on a slope and haven’t terraced anything (we do have retaining walls, but they’re structural and support the driveway and house).
Don’t overthink it too much, just put plants that want less water at the top of the hill and plants that want more at the bottom and in any dips in the terrain.
You don’t need to do anything special. The slope is pretty shallow. Plant your plants. If you’re worried about stabilization, add some ornamental grasses like little bluestems.
You could try solarizing a patch of garden next summer and then plant into it. I wouldn’t just try to plant into grass. It is hard to outcompete grass and you will just waste seeds.
It looks like a large area so I would do it in stages over a few years.
Totally! Just start with a few easy native plants, and let them spread. It’ll look great in no time!