Steeply Beautiful Slope Retention

Slope retention is critical for many homes — protecting your structure or preventing mud from overwhelming your landscape. While "slope retention" evokes sandbags and cement walls, there are strikingly lovely ways to encourage hillsides to stay put.

The Garden Route Company: Terracing small walls is a great strategy for shoring up slopes. Uses steep slope drama, adding dimension and layering to an otherwise uninviting hillside. Staircases create stability, accessibility, and visual invitation.

The Carter Rohrer Co.: While walls above are formal and contemporary, here the look is more rustic. Dry-stacked appearance often achievable with recycled or reclaimed materials.

LandscapeLens: Property depth keeps its steep retaining wall from overwhelming the view. Natural rock contrasts interestingly with modern architectural lines.

Climate matters. In California and dry-climate areas, a lake like this wouldn't be sustainable unless a collection pond holding and filtering water for irrigation.

Cassy Aoyagi, FormLA Landscaping: Some slopes need very strong, very steep support. Variation in depth and items creating visual interest soften what might feel like a tall, imposing vertical surface.

Blasen Landscape Architecture: Foliage is incredibly beautiful and effective for retaining slopes.

Understand root structures and water needs. If a plant requires lots of water to thrive in your climate, watering might undermine slope retention.

THOMAS KYLE: Landscape Designer: For gentle slopes, I adore native grass meadows.

Randy Thueme Design Inc.: In steeper areas, substantial focus encourages walkers to take a particular path. Substantial root structures of vertical foliage may also help retain the slope.

Cassy Aoyagi, FormLA Landscaping: Smart, sustainable plant spacing is key. Large plants may look instantly lovely but don't provide slope-stabilizing benefits of foliage whose root systems grow naturally in a space.

Coco fiber may be necessary to prevent surface erosion while plant life establishes. In a year, the area above this ledger stone retaining wall will look like a vertical wall of foliage, and the railroad-tie-supported hiking trail substantially softened by ample foliage.

Gast Architects: If done strategically, your effectively retained slope may just be your favorite view!

If you love your retaining wall, show it off — I'd love to see it! Add photos to Comments below.