Sloping Backyard Designs for Australian Gardens

Are you struggling to come up with sloping garden ideas? Fear not as our expert sloping garden top tips and ideas will give you the inspiration to use an incline to your advantage. Make the most of a sloping garden by creating a number of differently designed levels. 

It may seem like a challenge at first but don’t let a sloping garden limit your design ideas and expectations. Sloping gardens can actually offer a whole number of different opportunities than flat gardens cannot.  

With thoughtful landscaping, even steep slopes and the most fractured of gardens can be both visually attractive and practical. With a clever landscape design and careful planning, a sloping garden can be transformed into an amazing space that feels much larger than a flat, open garden. You can contact us here for a competitive quote or some helpful advice.

25 sloping garden ideas and tips

Struggling with sloping garden ideas? Need some inspiration? Here are our 25 top tips and ideas to help you:

Garden steps

Building steps is a great way to create a transition between spaces in a sloping garden. Stone and wooden steps can be both aesthetically pleasing and practical.

Create several tiers

Creating a tiered garden on a sloping landscape can help manage erosion and give you the opportunity to layer different plants and landscaping elements. Use concrete, stone or railroad ties to form the tiers, to make a big impact on the look of your property.

Build a waterfall

For the more ambitious, you can use the height of your sloping garden to your advantage and incorporate an amazing water feature. Turn your outside space into your own private oasis with a beautifully constructed waterfall.

Lay a winding path

Laying a winding path through your sloping garden draws the eye through the landscape and provides an attractive focal point. It’s also very practical as it makes it much easier and safer to move around the garden.

Ideas for retaining walls

Cutting into the slope of your garden and building retaining walls to hold back the soil can make your property much more practical. It also gives you the opportunity to create a dedicated planting area.

Incorporate a rock garden

Rock gardens are not only very satisfying to the eye but also extremely practical. They reduce your maintenance load in the garden and also give a stable base for rock-loving plants.

Build a fire pit

Transform your neglected sloping garden into an alluring destination with a fire pit. Cosy winter nights spent around the fire with family and friends is always a good idea.

Install vegetable beds

Make the most of your outdoor space by planting vegetables in raised beds. The shallower sections of the bed will be ideal for herbs and the deeper sections for root vegetables that require more soil.

Add more native plants

Native plants help reduce erosion by providing a network of roots to hold soil in place. They will also require very little maintenance as they will naturally thrive in their native environment.

Create different zones

A gives you the opportunity to create different zones. Why not incorporate a patio, comfortable seating area and dining space.

Add plants with different heights

A sloping garden gives you the opportunity to play around with the height of planting. Use climbing plants and structures to create a more dynamic and design-led look that can’t be achieved in a garden sitting on just one level.

Create a more private area

Utilize your upward sloping garden to create a much more private space. Use taller trees and shrubs to create a screen across the back of your garden to give you greater privacy.

Planting tips for sloping gardens

Sloping gardens (especially those on a steep gradient) often have issues when it comes to planting selection as the soil can often be sandy and prone to drying out quickly. To counteract this you should; choose plants that thrive in quick-draining soil, plant through coconut matting and mulch the area to keep the soil wetter and prevent weeds from growing.

Add lighting

Add lighting to any steps in your sloping garden to ensure maximum safety. While accent lighting for certain trees and shrubs will also help you be more aware of the sloping plot.

Do not plant grass

Planting grass on sloping gardens doesn’t stop erosion and between 30-75% of all rainfall on grass-covered slopes runs off. As well as this, seeding a slope with grass encourages weeds to grow and makes re-establishing plants much more difficult.

Raise a seating area

Create an elevated view over the rest of the garden with a raised staged seating area. Turn the sloping site into a design feature as opposed to a design feat.

Build a slide between levels

Turn your sloping back garden into a children’s dream play area by building a slide between levels. The slide works as both entertainment for the children and also gives them a safe way to travel between the different levels.

Create a multi-level garden

It’s hard to imagine what to do if your garden has a very steep slope. By using retaining walls, you can turn that steep slope into a multi-level garden. Natural stone is often used to create this effect.

Use railway sleepers to add structure

Make a feature of the different height levels, enhancing them rather than trying to soften the look with railway sleepers. They’re most often used to contain flowerbeds between the levels.

Add character with gabion walls

Gabion walls not only add character to the steps in your sloping garden. The retaining walls also play an important role by stabilizing the steep slopes while also preventing erosion.

Install a garden pond

Use a hardscape stone wall on the side of a pond to disguise a slope across a garden. The stone walls allow you to split the different levels of the garden in a very natural-looking way.

Incorporate some sunken seating

When you have limited space as a result of a sloping garden, it’s important to come up with clever ideas to make the most of it. Retaining walls can also be used to create built-in lounge seating.

Brighten spaces with pale walls

Choose pale materials and colours to help open up the space of your seating area. The space will feel much more airy and relaxed as a result.

Divide your garden with sloping curves

A great way to disguise a steep sloping plot is by inserting sweeping garden paths. It subtly divides up the sloping site and creates a beautiful look. A curvy retaining wall can also have the same effect.

Add some stylish railings

Gardens with a significant slope must comply with building and safety regulations to ensure everyone’s safety. However, you can use this as an opportunity to incorporate some stylish railings. 

 

Draining a sloping backyard

Sloping gardens can be some of the most aesthetically pleasing but they do offer additional challenges when it comes to issues such as drainage. Below are some actions you undertake to ensure your outdoor space drains as well as possible:

• Build a pond at the bottom of the slope for water to naturally drain into
• Create a bog garden in which water-loving plants grow
• Add in some drainage channels to take the water away from the base of the slope
• Install French drains or dry wells below the topsoil to disperse and redirect excess water
• Add in plenty of manure and mulch to keep the soil at the top of the slope moist all year round
• Regularly check your yard to prevent future drainage issues

How to flatten a sloping backyard

Follow the steps below if you decide to flatten your sloping backyard:

• Remove all vegetation and clear any debris
• Grade any areas around your garden to ensure that water flows away from your building after levelling
• Use stakes and string to measure the rise and run of the slope
• Calculate the number of terrace levels you will need (a rise of 2 feet and a run of 5 feet per terrace is usually recommended)
• Water the ground to avoid having to dig into hard ground
• Build retaining walls
• Fill the majority of the hole formed with sand and fill the topmost part with compost and topsoil ready for planting
• Plant new grass seed or sod

What permissions do I need to level my garden?

You don’t need any specific permissions to start your sloping garden project. However, there are a couple of factors that you must take into consideration before starting the work. 

Firstly if you plan to move any trees that are located in the garden, you’ll need to check if there are any tree protection orders on any of them. If so then you could be breaking the law so it’s best to seek professional advice before you begin. 

You’ll also want to consider all boundary walls and fences. Will any changes within the garden affect your neighbour’s wall or fence? boundary walls may need underpinning if you’re dropping the level of the ground a significant amount (which can prove rather costly).

Hire the experts that can help you design your sloping backyard

With many years of experience as a garden management specialist, the Amico team can help transform your sloped backyard into your dream area. Our aim is to create a garden that you’ll love for many years to come, by solving all of your garden needs while working to your budget. 

Contact us today for a competitive quote, or even just to ask some questions and run some ideas past us. We’ll be happy to hear your vision, ensure it’s possible and even make some helpful suggestions to enable you to get the best garden possible into your home as quickly as possible.

FAQs

We hope this article has given you all the inspiration you need for your sloping garden. However, if you do have any other questions you can contact us or alternatively you can check out our most Frequently Asked Questions below which may help you solve your query. 

What can I do with a sloping lawn?

There are a huge number of sloping garden ideas available to you but you can contact us today for some bespoke ideas for your particular property.

How do you landscape a sloped yard on a budget?

We strive to ensure that we at Amico can solve all of your garden needs while working to your specific budget.

How do you create a landscape on a slope?

There are a number of ways to create a landscape on a slope by incorporating paths or utilising a retaining wall. 

What can I do with a sloping back garden?

Whether you have a steep or gentle slope we’ll be able to provide you with a number of options for your backyard.

How do you drain a sloping garden?

An improved drainage system can help drain a sloping garden. Check out the other alternatives in the article above or contact us for any more information

Can you flatten a sloped garden? 

Follow our guide for flattening a sloped garden or contact us for any more information you might need. 

What can you plant on a steep slope?

Deep-rooted and any native plants are the best to plant on a steep-sloped garden. 

Should a garden slope be terraced?

A garden slope doesn’t have to be terraced but one of the main advantages is that terraces control soil erosion as water doesn’t run down the previously sloped garden.