Feeling a bit daunted by making something beautiful out of your sloped backyard? Don’t panic! We’ve got all the best ideas for landscaping a sloped garden on a budget!
Some of the most beautiful and creative garden ideas I’ve come across have been on sloped land. Having extra height and different levels gives you much more scope to create intriguing features in your yard.
So whether you want to spruce up your backyard slope – or if you’re looking for a fun outdoor project, then you’ll love these landscaping ideas.
Let’s look at some of the best-sloped backyard ideas on a budget!
1. Stone Slab Path for Sloped Backyards
This stone staircase would make a great feature in any sloped backyard. Stone slabs can be relatively inexpensive, or you may even have some lying around your land.
2. Easy Raised Garden Beds for Sloped Land
I love raised garden beds because it’s easier to manage rogue weeds! Even if a few weeds sprout up – it’s straightforward enough to spot them when they’re inside of your raised garden bed.
Building raised beds on a slope is a genius use of space and uses less building materials – especially compared to constructing them on flat land.
3. Upcycled Sloped Backyard Water Feature
The best thing about having a sloped backyard garden is that the water runs downhill! A downhill slope eliminates some friction when creating a great upcycled water feature, such as this innovative watering can design.
Read More – How to Make an Epic Bubbling Rock Fountain!
4. Turn Your Slope Into a Playground
Imagine how much fun the kids will have in this sloped-garden-turned-play-haven! Installing a playground is a great use of the natural slope of your backyard.
5. Sloped Backyard Seating Deck
Don’t think you can’t have a flat area to sit outside just because you live on a slope! Wooden decking is a quick and inexpensive way to create a level seating area for a sloped backyard.
6. Turn Your Slope Into a Beach
This is such a wonderful idea for your sloped backyard! If you love going to the beach, you’ll love this idea. And so will your pets!
The creator, Bud Stuckey, built this 100-square-foot beach for less than 200 bucks, in two days!
7. A Waterfall Cascading Down the Slope
You’ll be totally obsessed with this idea. Whether you’ve always wanted a waterfall (me, me!) or you’ve never considered it before – this full tutorial with photos will get you excited about the idea!
This waterfall cascades down a long slope and ends in a koi pond. And the best thing? The tutorial shows you exactly how to do it yourself, in your own backyard!
8. DIY This Rock Retaining Wall
This is a full tutorial, with pictures, instructions, and a video! Learn how to build a rock retaining wall just like this one in your own sloped backyard.
It’s ultra-cheap to DIY, too!
9. Terraces for Sloped Backyards
Bring a Mediterranean vibe to your yard with some simple terraces. Plants such as rosemary and lavender will thrive in these rocky conditions and bring color and fragrance to your outdoor areas.
10. Budget Path for Sloped Backyard
Putting in some simple wooden supports is a quick and easy way to build steps into a slope. You can either fill the steps with gravel or use topsoil for a cheaper option.
Read More – How to Make a Beautiful Rockery Garden!
11. Sloped Garden Flower Trail
Create a spectacular point of interest with a beautiful flower trail through your sloped backyard with this tutorial by White Flower Farm.
12. Add a Stone Bench Seating Area With Fire Pit
What an incredible way to make use of your sloped backyard! It’s not hard to imagine many wonderful nights under the stars, lounging with family and friends, the firepit crackling before you…
A great idea!
13. Carve Rustic Stone Steps Out of the Hillside With Flagstone
Jaime Haney lists all the steps to your very own set of flagstone steps on his blog, with plenty of photos to show you how to go about it. These stone steps fit beautifully into the natural landscape and would make a stunning addition to any sloped backyard!
14. Use Pallets to Create Gardens on a Slope
Julia didn’t like her sloped garden… It was hard to mow and harder to keep it looking nice. She stumbled upon the idea of using pallets as gardens.
Julia isn’t done yet. She’s planning on adding more pallets and stepping stones – then maybe adding vegetables next year.
A fantastic, budget idea!
15. Budget Pond for Sloped Backyard
Using the sloped ground to create a pond gives you so much more scope to get creative, adding in waterfalls and streams running through your yard!
16. Control Run-Off With Stone
Look at how Denise controls water run-off in her sloped garden!
She needed a beautiful idea to help control the flow of the heavy, erosive Arkansas rains. The idea above is one of her downhill paths which winds through a variety of relaxing herbs.
17. Increase Your Space With Raised Beds
These raised gardens, built by Pam in her Carolina garden, are a great way to increase your usable space on a slope!
See how she went about it on her blog.
18. Build a Picnic Table That’s Always Level
Here’s a simple hack to build a picnic table for your sloped backyard! You can easily DIY this with simple shelf brackets and a tabletop.
19. Build a Shade Garden on a Slope
This is a lovely idea for a budget shade garden in your sloped backyard. Plant hosta, painted ferns, coral bells, variegated Jacob’s ladder, and Astilbe for a natural, work-with-nature approach.
20. Low Maintenance Lawn Alternatives
The big problem with sloped lawns is how to mow them! Get around this problem by planting a low-growing alternative lawn, such as clover or creeping thyme. You can buy premium quality, Oregon-grown white clover seed on Amazon!
21. Sheltered Seating Area for Sloped Backyard
This sheltered seating area would be great for anyone on a tight budget, as long as you’re not afraid of a bit of hard work! If you don’t have any bricks handy, you can make the retaining wall from reclaimed wood instead.
Read More – How to Easily Stop Weeds From Growing in Rocks!
22. Sloped Backyard Rock Garden
Here’s another brilliant landscaping idea for sloped gardens. I love the rocks – I feel like they add a massive amount of personality to the sloped yard!
Rocks are a great way to add structure and help prevent erosion in a sloped garden. Interplanting your rocks with fragrant herbs and flowers will bring scent and color to your yard.
23. Low-Cost Woodland Trail
Trees are a great way to retain soil and prevent erosion on sloped land. A woodland trail can be very cheap to plant, especially if you have a source of trees such as willow to take cuttings.
24. Children’s Play Area for Sloped Land
Another great advantage of sloped land is that you can get creative with the kid’s play area. A longer slope equals a lengthier slide, perfect for hours of outdoor fun!
25. Sheltered Fire Pit Area
I love how the firepit rests within a slope! I think this adds to the privacy of the fireplace and also makes the party feel more exclusive. Awesome!
Building a fire pit in a sheltered area on your sloped land is a clever way to stop smoke blowing everywhere at your next BBQ.
26. Stock Tank Swimming Pool Built Into the Slope
I love the creativity of this sloped landscape! Who else wants to go for a dip? Having a hilly yard was never so relaxing – and refreshing!
Don’t think you can’t have the luxuries in life just because you’re on a tight budget!
This excellent swimming pool built into a sloped backyard derives from a stock tank. You may be able to pick a secondhand tank up for very little money or even barter or swap!
Read More – How To Build a Roaring Cinder Block Fire Pit Grill!
27. Create a Gorgeous Retaining Wall Garden
Create a tiered garden with retaining walls at different heights, complemented by gorgeous, lush plants that cascade over the edges. (See our post on the most stunning cascading plants for retaining walls!)
I could see myself grabbing my morning cuppa and meandering through this peaceful landscape!
28. A Slope of Flowers
Completely fill your slope with gorgeous flowering plants for a wall of flowers. Add scented flowering plants to make it even more impressive!
29. An Inviting Path Up the Slope
This is a very impressive design idea for sloped backyards! The lawn path, meandering through stone retaining walls, looks incredibly inviting – I just want to skip up there! Add a seating area up the top for the ultimate backyard relaxation.
30. Use the Natural Slope as a Waterfall
Make your sloped backyard work for you and with nature by adding a waterfall feature! Birds and wildlife may come to visit and you’ll love the sound of trickling water in the background.
31. Create a Classic Landscape With Natural Stone
Natural stone and big rocks create this lovely landscaped garden on a slope. Add lots of creeping plants to turn it into a rockery the neighbors will be envious of!
32. Use Centerpieces to Break the Slope
Break up the slope with big centerpieces. Include big, natural rocks, pots, shrubs, and trees.
33. Rock Walls to Level the Ground
Build rock retaining walls at different heights to go with the slope of your backyard. Increase your space and create an interesting centerpiece at the same time.
34. Vertical Rockery
Create a vertical rockery retaining wall with big rocks and drought-hardy plants, succulents, and creepers.
35. Succulent Water Landscape
Go from drab to fab with this water feature, surrounded by succulent plants.
36. Go All-Out With Style
This sloped garden has been turned into an incredible, drought-hardy wall of beauty. Use Yuccas or Pandanus trees for some vertical interest pieces, and lots of colored-foliage plants.
37. Retaining Wall Surrounding the House
What an amazing design idea! This project would take a fair bit of time but the result is definitely worth it. The gorgeous rock wall adds a beautiful, gigantic raised garden to your backyard and it complements the house.
More Sloped Backyard Ideas on a Budget
Feast your eyes on these amazing photos of sloped backyards and use the inspiration to turn your own slope into a masterpiece!
38. Giant Slip and Slide
39. Terrace Your Slope
40. DIY Stacked Stone Garden Wall
41. Build a Fort on a Slope
42. Terraced Backyard
43. Cave With Slide
44. Amazing Tranquility on a Slope
45. Stairway to Heaven
46. Hillside Slide
47. Rock Garden on a Slope
48. Native Plant Wonderland
49. Artwork on the Hill
50. Build a Deck
51. Stabilize Your Slope With Pallets
52. Gardens With Trellis
53. Chicken Coop on a Slope
54. Horse Trough Hillside Garden
55. Learn to Landscape a Steep Slope the Permaculture Way
56. Stunning Sloped Garden Design
57. Mulch It Well
58. Retaining Wall With Plectranthus
59. No-Mow Slope With Wild Grasses
60. Use Groundcover Plants to Hold the Slope
61. Make It Maintenance-Free With Helichrysum and Gazania
Sloped Backyard and Hilly Landscaping FAQ
We spend oodles of time researching the best landscaping ideas for sloped backyards.
We also have a ton of experience getting our hands dirty – and we’re happy to share our best sloped backyard insights with you.
Let’s begin!
Not at all! Sloped yards might take more effort in landscaping, but you have many more creative opportunities when gardening on a hill.
One thing to be aware of with a sloped backyard is where the water runs off. If the land is sloped downhill towards your house, you might end up with a flooded home! However, the correct drainage should sort this problem out.
Most good things take time and effort, and that includes making your sloped garden beautiful! Start small by focusing on just one area rather than embarking on a massive and daunting landscaping project.
The quickest way to add some interest and features to a sloped garden is to install rock (or stone) steps and add a line of flowering plants or shrubs alongside them. Add some solar lights, and voila – you’ve got a sloped garden feature!
When planting on a slope, consider that water and soil retention may differ from your flatter land! The sloped ground may dry out more quickly, and nutrients may run off the soil.
Look for plants with a healthy root system that will anchor them into the ground. The strong roots will help them to stay put in heavy rainfall and reduce soil erosion.
Perennial plants work better than annuals on sloped land, as they will provide ground cover all year round. My favorites would be edible perennials, such as globe artichokes, interplanted with herbs and smaller fruit bushes.
There are two ways to prevent erosion on a sloped yard, either by strategic planting or by landscaping the area.
Using plants is the most natural method of preventing erosion. Roots of trees, shrubs, and plants will hold onto soil and even improve the quality of the dirt over time.
If you have a severe erosion problem, then you may need to give nature a hand. Use supports made from wood, brick, or rock to retain soil, particularly in areas with a high level of water runoff.
If you are looking for ground cover for a hillside, look for low-growing plants which spread quickly. Ideally, you don’t want to be mowing or trimming your hillside more than necessary, so plants that are low maintenance work well here.
To cover bare ground on a hillside quickly, scatter seeds of fast-spreading plants such as clover or mustards. You could also consider sowing a wildflower mix to attract beneficial pollinators to your garden.
What Are Your Favorite Sloped Backyard Design Ideas?
We’re always trying to find sloped hill ideas from homesteaders all over the world!
If you have some sloped hill ideas that we haven’t thought of yet – please share!
Also – let us know which sloped hill ideas are your favorite? Does anything catch your attention?
Thanks again for reading!
Please have a great day!
Read More – 21+ Epic Texas Landscaping Ideas for a Flourishing Texan Garden!
Want an awesome-looking stepping stone with tons of personality for your sloped yard? I love the detail on these turtles!
These cast-iron stepping stones are heavy-duty and are roughly 13-inches long by 9-inches wide and 1/2-inches thick.
