Slope Success: Terracing, Erosion Control, and Planting Strategies for Hillside Gardens

Marta Krampitz's steep Oakland canyon garden was weedy and unusable. Designers Richard Sullivan and Shari Bashin-Sullivan transformed it into a colorful, low-maintenance, deer-resistant tapestry of long-blooming perennials and shrubs: Aster × frikartii, 'Sunset Gold' breath of heaven, Geranium incanum, Loropetalum chinense 'Plum Delight', Santa Barbara daisy. "The hillside is like a picture," says Bashin-Sullivan.

Hill Taming Techniques

• Retaining walls: Create terraces; connect with zigzag paths. On steep slopes, review plans with structural engineer.
• Jute erosion-control netting: Unfurl across grade; secure with U-shaped galvanized/plastic-coated pins. Cut X-shaped holes; plant through them.
• Dense, strong-rooted plants: Artemisia, ceanothus, cotoneaster, creeping mahonia (M. repens), ice plants, juniper, rockrose, rugosa roses.
• Staggered rows: Plant in staggered pattern on erosion-prone slopes.
• Drip irrigation: Emitters uphill of plants; delivers water without runoff.
• Berms on downhill side: Use soil from planting holes to catch rainwater.