Slope of Yard a Problem?

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bohmerjr Richmond, VA(Zone 7a) Mar 08, 2009

I am attempting to grow a garden for the first time this year. The only place in my yard that I can make a garden and not be in middle of the yard is on a slope. The plot is going to be 8' wide and 40' long. The slope is the 8' direction and is about 12" in drop. Is this a problem? I was thinking that I would create raised beds by digging trenches along the 40' direction and heaping the dirt on either side to create a sort of raised bed. I thought I could level these raised beds off somewhat , but I see that this would lead to a gradually deepening raised bed as I get to the downhill side of the 8' width. Another thought would be to try to plant the veggies that need deeper soil for their roots on the downhill side and shallower ones on the uphill side of the plot. Am I overthinking this? Any advice would be greatly welcomed. I see a real need to harvest some of my families food this year and don't want to make any bad mistakes.

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margocstn Savannah, GA Mar 08, 2009

It sounds like you want to terrace your yard. I'm having trouble envisioning your description though, probably cause it's flat here. Maybe someone from the mountains can chime in. I did a quick search and scan and did not see anything addressing this.

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Stephen_Albert Kenwood, CA Mar 09, 2009

The 12-inch drop seems as though it would allow for a simple terrace. Level off the bed, and you could use a 2 x 12 inch or 2 x 18 inch plank on the downhill side of the bed to keep the soil in place. A suggestion: keep the bed(s) less than 4 feet wide so you can work and harvest from the edge of the bed and never have to step into it. This might help prevent the bed from shifting downhill. Your deep-shallow root planting idea seems logical--to keep the soil in place. If you use rows (as opposed to wide beds) run them across the slope--even if it's terraced. One other suggestion: since it's the first year--divide the garden into a few different beds and try out a few different planting schemes and next year adopt the most successful one. Cheers!

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fremar Comer, GA(Zone 7b) Mar 14, 2009

with those dimensions I would also suggest you go to your local library and read "square foot gardening"
or if a library isn't close by search the net for that phrase

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