Have you got a stepped/terraced or very steep garden?

[MrsFogi]

Could you tell me what it's like to live with? We are interested in a house but can't decide whether to go for it or not as the big downside (we think) is that it has a steep stepped garden - it's about 60 foot deep but on three levels - the first at ground level the top level is about level with the upstairs of the house (at least) - its steps upwards from the back of the house. One of the steps is a bit slopy (sp?). If you have a garden like this could you step this way and tell me all about it - does it work with children (I'm worried about them not having much of an area to run around in) and anything else I won't have thought about as we currently have a very small yard .

Mine isn't very very steep, but it is on 3 levels, with the 2nd level about 7ft above the patio and the next a foot or so above that.

It's not ideal for kids to be honest - as you say, the areas to run around in or ride trikes are made smaller, and you have to watch them if they are little and there are steps. It's more interesting as a garden, but if it's mainly for the kids to play in I'd say it's a downside.

Oh, and we have different climates in the different parts, even though the garden is pretty small. We have a suntrap patio, and up on the lawn it's cool and breezy.

I'd love a garden like this, at the moment . . . but I'm not sure how I'd cope with all the steps with my zimmer frame when I am old(er) and grey(er). You could have a stunning water feature!

What direction does the house face? Is the garden in deep shade for part/all of the day? And what about the main rooms - are they very dark? Personally, I'd be really happy with that, but it wouldn't suit most people.

We have stepped garden that slopes down from the house. It's quite large though and each level change has only two or three steps, so it's quite manageable by small children. Ds who is at the crawling stage quickly learnt to zip up and down without incident. Dd who is nearly three occasionally trips up the steps while running, but then three year olds trip over all sorts of things. there's a grassed sloping path all the way down one side which proved to be great for sledging in the winter. In short, I think it works well for children.

I would be less enthusiastic about a garden sloping up from the house though for flooding reasons. Check the drainage.