I have a very steep lawn that is treacherous to mow.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/172966441913688343/

English ivy, half of my back yard is covered in it. That way I only need to clean up around the edges occasionally. Got tired of mountain climbing at an angle to mow!

I have a very steep hill in my back yard. So I can relate. I love the look of blue rug juniper draping over boulders like a waterfall. This is an evergreen which looks good in the winter as well as warm weather. It is low maintenance once established. You will need to mulch. You might want to get boulders and smaller rocks for a retaining wall. Its hard to know without pictures of your site and your location.

They like full sun best, but will grow in part shade, just slower and probably won’t get as large. Perhaps the apple tree needs to be thinned which would provide more sun to everything below. Its good for apples too.

Thanks, you’re right! I just moved in a couple years ago and there’s a lot of things that have been let go. I appreciate your help