Any ideas for a sloping garden facelift?

[jjanice842]

I have a terrible east facing garden which is sunny all day until about 4.30pm. It slopes downwards and has eight steps from my back door down so is quite steep. I was thinking about replacing the whole patio and extending a little further, then having the turfed area levelled off and extending from both sides of the fence to give me more grass space. It will cover up the path, gravel and hideous retaining wall. Then a few steps from garage to be built with a flat path to back gate. I am also replacing garage roof to make it slightly less of an eyesore. What do you think? Any good gardeners out there / anyone with a good imagination that won't cost the earth to make this more usable and safe? (Fence currently being replaced)

What do you want from your garden? Somewhere to sit? A hobby? A place to dry laundry? Play space for kids? Wildlife? Or is it just a necessary evil to walk through that you want to make hassle free but presentable?

And are you able to get a pic looking the other way, back to the house from the gate?

As said already, how to you plan to use the garden? Do you have small children or pets to consider?

For myself, I'd like to see some shrubs for screening as it looks pretty open at the moment. Then look at extent of lawn and what else you might do.

I want it safe for my toddler to play and flat so I can put some of her play things on the grass. I will put dining furniture on the patio. For laundry I was going to get rid of the whirlygig and get a retractable washing line to get rid of looking at that pole. What are your thoughts on landscaping plan? Any other ideas? I’m hopeless!

Good call about the whirlygig!

Anything the involves removing or adding soil will push prices up. It's hard to judge, but would it be feasible to have a step down from the patio, and another step down before the garage? We did a great retaining wall using railway sleepers and metal posts that were like an H shaped cross section, so you cemented the posts into the ground, and then dropped the sleepers between the posts. Much cheaper than a brick wall! If you staged it like that excess soil can be moved around rather than carted away.

You could consider a wildflower roof for the garage. No idea of the cost!

Slopes are tricky and expensive to level out.
If you're working on a tight budget, I wonder if a design that you could work on gradually over time might suit, rather than trying to level a whole area at once?
It's difficult to assess the size from your photo, but perhaps a plan like this?
It would hide the garage somewhat, give you a more balanced space with an interesting vista, as well as providing a couple of level lawn areas for your toddler to play.

You could start on a simple gravel and paving path at the far end alongside the garage, then add the arch and trellis in front of it. After that start work on the lower lawn - it could be level or just slightly sloping - or even just sloping upwards at the tip end of the teardrop shape...

@MrsBertBibby

You could consider a wildflower roof for the garage. No idea of the cost!

They are quite heavy, particularly after rain, so the roof would need to be strong enough to take the weight.

What would be some good plants / trees / shrubs I could put in planters to conceal the back of the garage? The retaining wall will be covered with turf but I can put some planter boxes on the grass to cover the garage?

How much light does the garage get? If it gets plenty then an evergreen climber like Trachelospermum jasminoides would be nice. Fabulously jasmine-scented flowers in summer, glossy green leaves in spring and summer that turns red in winter. Clematis can be lovely, though they're a faff.

Put up trellis or get a roll of sheep fencing, which would last longer than trellis.

Or you could push the boat out and grow beans up it. Your daughter might enjoy picking beans.

Oh yes, or you could put in a climbing rose. 'Zephirine Drouhin' has lovely rich pink flowers and is a repeat bloomer. Lovely perfume too. Also, it has no thorns which is a big deal if you've got a toddler.

It's a little unclear what you are asking - have you already a garden design in mind? It sounds as if you are planning two rectangles - a patio then a lawn with a retaining wall at the outer edge of each; and the lawn extending right out to the wall with no shrub border?

If so - how high above the base of the garage will the retaining wall be?
This will determine what height of plants you will need to camouflage the garage.

I would be hesitant to put planters at the edge of a lawn with a retaining wall drop below, particularly with tall plants - they are likely to be an unstable hazard and blown over the wall in windy weather.
Also putting the planters on grass will kill the grass where they stand!