Landscaping/planting on a steep hill - Ask Extension
Hello,
We live in South Minneapolis and have a corner lot on a busy-ish street (54th Street & Columbus Ave). We have a tiny yard and most of the...
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Landscaping/planting on a steep hill #740396
Asked March 23, 2021, 3:14 PM EDT
Hello,
We live in South Minneapolis and have a corner lot on a busy-ish street (54th Street & Columbus Ave). We have a tiny yard and most of the grass is a steep hill which never stays green in the summer (dry and scorched) and also makes mowing challenging. We don't have a huge budget to do tall brick walls or tierd walls to to bring up the grade so we're curious what type of plants and creative ideas a Master Gardener has for this challenging space. Are there certain plants that work well on a steep grade? Are there any hardscaping ideas that aren't just landscaping brick walls? In my head I'm imaging a short wall along the sidewalk and then some plants with height and volume like hydrangeas but we're open to all options. I've attached some pictures of front and side yard.
Thank you so much for your time and ideas!
Best,
Annie & Chris Matthews
Hennepin County Minnesota
Expert Response
Hello! Happy to help.
I've seen sloped front yards in Minneapolis where people have planted ground cover that reaches only a certain height solving the problem of having to mow on the slope. That would require a ground cover that likes sun because I'm sure there's not much shade except from the house and I'm not sure which direction the front yard is in in relation to the house.
The U of MN Extension master gardeners put out a book called The Best Plants for 30 Tough Sites. Here is a link to the page where you can click on the PDF version of it. Page 34 contains a list of plant suggestions for steep slopes. I would also encourage you to check with the nurseries in your area for slope holding plants.
When it comes to grasses, I particularly like Prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepsis). Their neat mounds dotting an area can create an orderly grassy slope that never looks out of control. I've included a picture of a patch of it on a slight slope. Being a prairie grass, its roots are deep and soil holding.
I've seen sloped front yards in Minneapolis where people have planted ground cover that reaches only a certain height solving the problem of having to mow on the slope. That would require a ground cover that likes sun because I'm sure there's not much shade except from the house and I'm not sure which direction the front yard is in in relation to the house.
The U of MN Extension master gardeners put out a book called The Best Plants for 30 Tough Sites. Here is a link to the page where you can click on the PDF version of it. Page 34 contains a list of plant suggestions for steep slopes. I would also encourage you to check with the nurseries in your area for slope holding plants.
When it comes to grasses, I particularly like Prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepsis). Their neat mounds dotting an area can create an orderly grassy slope that never looks out of control. I've included a picture of a patch of it on a slight slope. Being a prairie grass, its roots are deep and soil holding.
Here is a link to the U of MN Extension page about landscaping where you'll find lots of other links to round out the concepts of landscaping and plant selection.
I hope this helps.
