Hi Jessica,

Thanks for reaching out to Ask Extrension about your slope rehab project. There are a lot of great erosion control plant picks that are low or no maintenance and drought tolerant. Here is a pretty good article on groundcovers from Clemson's extension office. Most of the plants on their list are good choices for our area as well. A few in particular that you might consider are St. John's Wort, Creeping Rosemary, Kinnikinnik, and Lamb's Ears. If you are looking for something bigger/taller, juniper or cotoneaster are good options. All of these will mound, spread, and create root mats that will help control the soil.

If cost is your top priority, however, you may want to plant something that can be direct seeded rather than buying starts. In that case, perennial evergreen grasses such as fescues could be a good option. They would likely need some water to get established their first year (particularly if you plant now), but once established, these mounding evergreen grasses would not need to be mowed or watered.

That brings up one last point which might be challenging at a rental property - no matter what you plant, it will need irrigation at first until it can develop a good root system. Some people accomplish this by planting in the fall. If you must embark on this project now, know that whatever you plant will need a little bit of water to get through the first summer.

Best of luck!

Sarah Bronstein, Master Gardener '22