Harnessing the magic of sloping gardens
Here in the Stroud Valleys, there are very few flat gardens. If you have a sloping garden, the thought of creating a beautiful user-friendly space can feel daunting. Here are some ideas to make you excited about designing your sloping garden!
Discovering new views
The best part of redesigning a sloping garden is that you can take advantage of new views from parts of the garden that were previously inaccessible. In a flat garden, your selection of views is fairly fixed, but not so in a sloping garden. Try standing in different spots around your garden and notice which views you are drawn to and those you prefer not to see. This can help you decide where to place seating or dining areas to ‘borrow’ attractive views and where to plant larger trees or shrubs to frame or hide views.
Above: this seating area looks over the roof tops to the lovely copper beech tree in the distance.
Moving around your garden
There are many options to choose from to make your garden more accessible. A lot depends on the size of your garden and your budget.
For steep slopes: Steps
While you can use ramps or sloping pathways for gentle slopes, steep slopes need steps. Typically, these will be made of concrete or specially treated timber built into the slope. In the industry people call the vertical face ‘risers’ and the flat step ‘goings’.
As a guide, steps on steep gradients cost £330-£1,320/m.
Above left: Wide stone steps with rubblestone risers.
Above middle: Steps made from sleepers with gravel fill. This option is robust and will last 10 years or more. If hardwood such as oak is chosen, it will last 20 years or more.
Above right: Stone goings with rendered risers is an elegant solution. Here the steps are made from limestone and a groove has been cut into the lip that contains an LED strip light for nighttime illumination (photo below).
For gentle slopes: Ramps and sloping pathways
Ramps are ideal for allowing inclusive access for wheelchairs, bicycles, or buggies. However, ramps do take up more space, making them harder to place within a design. There are also limits to how steep a ramp can be built, so the path might need to zig-zag down the slope to maintain the correct gradient.
Above: A combination of ramps and steps is ideal to provide easy access to all and works well where the height from the top to the bottom of the slope is not too great.
For smaller sloping gardens: Terracing
If you have a smaller garden, retaining walls will be a must.
One of the less expensive methods is stone-filled metal mesh baskets (called gabions). However, these are a little space-hungry. If you like wood, an oak palisade retaining wall (see photo) is a great natural-looking option and will last over 20 years. This looks good in a country or seaside scheme and is less expensive than a concrete retaining wall.
If space is minimal, a reinforced concrete wall can be the answer. There are two options: solid shuttered concrete, which is very expensive but requires no finishing and if you enjoy the slightly brutalist look, then this one is for you. The alternative is hollow concrete blocks threaded with reinforcement bars and filled with concrete. These can then be faced in whatever material you like; brick, stone, tile, or even wood.
Depending on how steep your garden is, the most cost-effective way to deal with terracing is to create banked terraces. The banks can be made from soil or rocks and can be covered with plants that help to keep the soil in place through their strong root systems, such as Euonymus fortune ‘Harlequin’, Vinca major and Euphorbia amygdaloides var. robbiae.
Whatever options you are drawn to, a structural engineer’s opinion is vital to ensure your sloping garden is safe for people, your home and any surrounding land.
Above: The terracing in this steeply sloping garden uses stone, wood and metal.
Planting tips for sloping gardens
Choose plants that look great when seen from below and plant these on the edges of your elevated sections. Here’s a handy list of some plants you might like to try:
Aquilegia
Smooth Solomon’s seal
Andromeda companulata
Helleborus
Fritillaria Meleagris
Silene nutans
Place potted plants on steps
If your steps are wide enough they make perfect surfaces for placing potted plants. The planting could be permanent, using species that often fare better in pots such as hostas (wrap copper tape around your pot for slug protection) or seasonal arrangements of bulbs such as tulips (image above).
Hopefully, you are now feeling inspired about unleashing the potential of your sloping garden!
If you live in the South West of the UK and would like a full consultation or design service for your sloping garden, get in touch. You can email info@austindw.co.uk or call 01453 836393.
