# What should I put on these slopes?



## toomanyhobbies (Jun 25, 2019)

I removed about 800 cubic yards of dirt from the back of the house that my wife and I have under construction, so that there would be a view from the basement to our pond. We refer to this area as the back yard. The slopes down into the back yard are fairly steep, 2:1. I am looking for ideas on what to put on these slopes. I will be planting Bermuda Grass in the back yard and around the rest of the house.


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## toomanyhobbies (Jun 25, 2019)

Looking west toward our pond...



I picked a local knob on the property to build the house, so water drains off in every direction.

This is a clean slate project. I am capable of doing a lot of the landscape work myself, but don't have any landscaping experience and I definitely need ideas. I went by a local nursery today to request consulting services.


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## gm560 (Feb 22, 2018)

Nice house and property!

Not sure if this is what you are thinking, but would you consider some hardscaping? I would think some tiered gardens with retaining walls would be absolutely stunning.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/homestratosphere/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/7-retaining-wall-feb13.jpg
https://www.purepiscator.com/upload/2019/01/28/hillside-landscaping-tiering-an-existing-rock-wall-terraced-hillside-landscaping-l-b0d30f7f32dd97db.jpg


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## ThomasPI (May 18, 2019)

I'd be thinking about how you'll get water out of that area, French Drains. Very nice but it's a funnel shape and the water is going to sit at the bottom.


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## toomanyhobbies (Jun 25, 2019)

gm560 said:


> ...Not sure if this is what you are thinking, but would you consider some hardscaping? I would think some tiered gardens with retaining walls would be absolutely stunning.


Yes, I would rather not have to mow the slopes. They are steep enough to require always mowing downhill. I don't mind irrigating some plants or ground cover that is mixed in with some type of rock layout to prevent erosion.


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## toomanyhobbies (Jun 25, 2019)

ThomasPI said:


> I'd be thinking about how you'll get water out of that area, French Drains. Very nice but it's a funnel shape and the water is going to sit at the bottom.


No, the back yard has .400 % grade due west toward the pond and drains very well.

I also sloped the ground at an angle away from the top of the slopes to minimize water running down the slopes. I also ran all my gutter downspouts into two pipe systems all the way to the lake. So the only significant water running down the slopes is what rainwater falls directly on the slopes.

I do surveying for hire with centimeter GPS equipment and have access to landgrading equipment. Where I am lacking is in landscape design. I can handle the earth moving, but don't know how to make things pretty beyond that.


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## toomanyhobbies (Jun 25, 2019)

Can I simply put Bermuda Grass sod on the slopes? Would Zoysia be a better option since it wouldn't require mowing as often? Can someone suggest a method of pinning sod to the slopes until the grass gets established. Can I use rolls (instead of squares) that run "down" the slopes, so that my tractor can rest above the slopes to roll out the sod?

Is there another or mix of ground cover(s) that would work?

I can easily irrigate the slopes.


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## Brackin4au (Jun 13, 2018)

Your slopes look to be taller than mine, but the angle looks similar. I had sod placed on my slopes using the rolls, but they laid them horizontally, not vertically like you mentioned. I think the sod would do okay, but if you're not wanting to cut the grass on the slope, I would definitely go with the hardscape idea mentioned above.


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## toomanyhobbies (Jun 25, 2019)

Brackin4au said:


> ...but if you're not wanting to cut the grass on the slope, I would definitely go with the hardscape idea mentioned above.


The slopes start out at 8 feet tall and 16 feet horizontally, 2:1. I rounded off the top edges of the slopes yesterday and then did test runs down the slopes with our zero turn. I can't create enough radius on the top edges to prevent the zero turn from scalping when starting over the edge.

I am leaning toward rock, rock/plants, retainer walls, etc., but the cost to hardscape the 1,200 square feet of area may be much more than I was budgeting.

I need to complete the slopes really soon so that I can continue planting grass on the rest of the property. I disturbed about 3 acres that I need to get grass growing on again.


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## N LA Hacker (Aug 17, 2018)

I would definitely consider a small retaining wall at the bottom of the slopes. If not you'll be chasing mulch constantly. I think a mixture of large landscape rocks and small trees like a mixture of Japanese maples, smaller crape myrtle varieties, dogwoods, redbuds, etc, and then scatter with flowering shrubs and ground cover. Daphnes, creeping phlox, sun tolerant rhododendrons or azaleas (encores come to mind)


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## toomanyhobbies (Jun 25, 2019)

I am considering laying these flat on the slopes, side-by-side from the bottom of the slopes upward. I am assuming that gravity and friction between the rocks would hold them in place, especially since I have minimized the amount of water that will flow down the slopes. This method would require far fewer rocks, which would keep this project within budget.

Is there a special kind of sand that you put between the rocks that turns hard over time?

Please give me any additional advice such as landscape fabric or not, sand base or not, etc.

As of right now, I am not going to plant anything on the slopes. I am looking for minimum maintenance. I may have to occasionally spray the weeds.


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## N LA Hacker (Aug 17, 2018)

No fabric. To hell with that stuff especially on a slope.


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## Dawgvet (Jul 2, 2019)

toomanyhobbies said:


> Is there a special kind of sand that you put between the rocks that turns hard over time?


Would polymeric paver sand work in a situation like yours, or would the space between the rocks be too large for it to work properly?


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## Jconnelly6b (Mar 4, 2018)

My dad is a sales engineer for an erosion control/environmental protection company. He supplies this to customers regularly, and used it (their own version of it, Geoweb) own his own house he built on 2012.

You can fill it with dirt/rocks/sand whatever you like and how you intend to use it. What he did with his slope he filled with soil and then planted English ivy in every third cell. After 2 years you cannot see the web at all just a nice solid wall of ivy. Requires 0 maintenance and will hold for 40 years. I can't remember they exactly warranty the five for their own product, but's it's a long time.

https://www.amazon.com/DeWitt-DPGG-50110-DuPont-8-5-Ounce-Groundgrid/dp/B008XGT40U

If anyone else has erosion control questions I'd be happy to help. The old man worked as an inspector for the state for a decade and has been in private practice since.


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