Gardening Ideas On A Slope

Add Gorgeous Color to a Hillside and Stop Erosion with This Easy Slope Garden Plan

A low-maintenance mix of annuals and perennials creates the perfect border for a set of steps.

Filling a hillside with easy-care plants that help control soil erosion is a win-win for your yard. Shrubby Nanking cherries and cottage garden favorites such as Shasta daisies, black-eyed Susans, and lupines add height and long-lasting color to the design, and don't require much maintenance. Lower-growing plants such as petunias, sedum, and candytuft fill in the spaces between them. The effect is a lush, bloom-filled display that will look gorgeous from spring into fall. This plan is perfect for any sloped section of the yard but works especially well as a border bed next to a set of steps or an inclined path.

garden steps flanked by lush foliage

Plants for Creating the Easy Slope Garden Plan

8 Livingstone daisy (Dorotheanthus bellidiformis): Annual
6 Petunia 'Purple Wave': Annual
15 Candytuft (Iberis sempervirens): Zones 5-9
3 Crinkled hairgrass (Deschampsia flexuosa): Zones 4-9
6 Dianthus 'Bath's Pink': Zones 5-9, depending on species
1 Sedum spectabile: Zones 4-9
6 Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum × superbum): Zones 5-8
1 Knapweed (Centaurea dealbata): Zones 4-8
1 Lupine (Lupinus perennis): Zones 4-9
6 Alpine campion (Lychnis alpina): Zones 4-7
3 Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia 'Goldsturm'): Zones 4-9
9 Tickseed (Coreopsis grandiflora): Zones 4-9
3 Marsh marigold (Caltha palustris): Zones 3-7
3 Nanking cherry (Prunus tomentosa): Zones 2-7

If you aren't able to find the exact species or cultivars listed above, substitute with others that have similar colors, shapes, and sizes. And because some plants can become overly aggressive and spread out of control in certain climates, always check which species are considered invasive in your area before planting.

easy slope garden plan illustration

Credit: Illustration by Mavis Augustine Torke

Get the Free Easy Slope Garden Plan

The garden plan for this design includes an illustrated version of the planted garden, a detailed layout diagram, a list of plants for the garden as shown, and complete instructions for installing the garden. Free, one-time registration allows unlimited access to all garden plans, available as printable PDFs.

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