Working the Angles, Techniques for Gardening on Slopes (2024)
Stop mowing that steep slope and fill the space with colorful blooms.
A bed of groundcovers or a mixed border can provide year round beauty. A few strategically placed field stones and groundcovers on the gardens edge help to keep the soil in place.
This slope was once grass. Now daylilies, sedums, coral bells and other flowers provide a beautiful border for both the homeowner and their neighbor.
But planting on steep slopes like this can be difficult and soil erosion is a major concern. An old pot cut in half and a planting trick can keep your plants and soil in place. Dig a hole straight down into the hillside and large enough to accommodate the half pot. Fill with soil and plant your flower at the proper depth. Its been working here for several years.
Use drip irrigation or this nifty watering device to slowly provide needed water without washing out the soil. And dont forget to mulch.
A bit more information: Converting a hillside from grass to a garden can be challenging. Once the existing plants are killed and removed the hillside is subject to soil erosion. You can avoid this problem. Kill the grass with a total vegetation killer that allows you to plant within several weeks. Leave the dead grass in place to stabilize the soil. Plant through the layer of dead grass and cover the surface with mulch. The dead grass layer helps hold the soil and fibrous mulches in place and provides additional weed control. The dead grass will break down over time, adding organic matter and improving the soil to help your plants grow.
Stop mowing that steep slope and fill the space with colorful blooms. A bed of groundcovers or a mixed border can provide year round beauty. A few strategically placed field stones and groundcovers on the gardens edge help to keep the soil in place.
Plants need water to become established, and watering a barren slope is an invitation for runoff. If you are not going to be terracing the hillside and creating flat areas for planting, adding large rocks and boulders is a good alternative way to anchor the soil while the plants take hold.
If you plant vegetables in rows on a slope, place the rows across the slope, perpendicular to it, just as you see in pictures of contour farming, and water and soil won't run downhill along the rows. If your bed slopes to the south or west, your vegetables and herbs will enjoy the heat gathered by good sun orientation.
Deep-rooted plants, such as prairie plants, hold their own on even the steepest slope. Ornamental grasses, ground cover roses and shrubs (including shrub roses with a sprawling growth habit) work well in hillside and slope planting. Native plants are nearly always an excellent choice.
Steeper slopes are best handled either by creating level runs joined with steps, or by zigzagging across the slope's face. For easy walking, the path should be level from side to side. For the path to run across sloping ground, recontour the slope to create a level terrace for the pathway.
Consider the slope of the land and decide on the number of steps required. Mark the path where the steps will be placed, ensuring it's straight and level. Measure and Mark: Use stakes and string to mark the path of the steps. Measure the distance between each step to ensure even spacing.
Granite is naturally slip-resistant, which makes it one of the safer materials for a patio or path, particularly a sloping one. Granite is very durable and resilient, meaning it is well suited to the rigours of being used regularly as a walkway.
Create hills in mounds or rows. Start with a layer of newspaper or cardboard to act as a weed barrier, then take several shovels of quality garden soil and form a mound. Mix in a generous amount of compost or well-rotted manure. Plant your seeds or seedlings, and water well.
Around the world people have used terraces since ancient times to grow crops on steep hillsides. The benefit of preventing soil erosion is obvious, but an equal value is reduced runoff of soluble minerals with rain.
The easiest and least expensive option is to mulch your slope. For best results, use gorilla hair mulch, which is fibrous and has more traction. After laying landscaping fabric (to reduce weeds), put down jute netting to ensure the mulch stays put.
Can you put a raised bed on the slope? Absolute! In fact, building raised garden beds on slopes has many benefits, such as improved drainage, higher soil temperatures to plant earlier and extend the season, reduced erosion, and uniform distribution of water and nutrients.
Just like preparing a planting hole on flat land, a planting hole on a slope should be at least twice as wide and just the same depth as the plant's root ball (though the hole can be a bit elongated to fit the contour of the slope as opposed to the typical round hole on a flat ground).
Introduction: My name is Rueben Jacobs, I am a cooperative, beautiful, kind, comfortable, glamorous, open, magnificent person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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