Landscaping ideas for hill with poor drainage- I'd love suggestions!

Depending on your budget you might think about putting in a short retaining wall? Maybe about 3 to 4 feet high and start to level that area off with fill dirt with gravel below that for drainage. Your local Extension Office might have some ideas about what kind of ground cover you might want to put there as well. Ground cover will slow down the erosion and hold the soil in place. I'm a Master Gardener and those are just a few ideas and you might see if the French drains can be repaired?

Beautiful property! If your French drains no longer work that means they are clogged and need to be cleaned out. Get out there and clear the muck, or get your gardener to do for you, or hire a plumber. They require a minimum of maintenance, but do need to be looked after. Once functioning again then reevaluate your next step.

Hi Jane, The best thing is a vinyl fence. Make the pitch higher, so the water runs off. The fence will never rot or need painting. All you have to do is hose it down to clean it.

This ground looks similar to the angle around my home. Ours is built into a hill and has a steep grade. My suggestion is as Nancy said use the angle to your advantage using the blocks to build different levels of retaining wall. I then filled it up with good dirt and planted flowers in mine. It is not a cheap project but done correctly it will last years and with mulch & flowers it is quite attractive from the road.

Depending on where you live I would probably do blooming shrubs like hydrangeas, azaleas, and possibly rhododendrons. To keep the mulch from washing away you may want to build up a sort of wall in the low area so even if the mulch washes down you can still keep it in the beds. Could be a really pretty space but it will take some muscle to get it right. Lining with large rocks or making a brick border around the edge would help.

rock dry river bed with potted plants

I'm with Mary. Rocks. It's cheaper to buy a truck load. Must put down weed control first. I did this across the front of my house. It gives color and I used large rocks as accent pieces. If your climate is right, Crown of Thorns plant blooms all year and adds more color.

Hostas always worked for us....they are affordable and come in many different varieties. They also can withstand drought conditions. Good luck!

Many hostas are shade plants so do your research.

You must prevent any water from getting near your foundation.

Before you do any more planting I think I would add a couple of rows of weeping tile the full length of the area so that excess water runs out onto the grass and not head for your home. Place garden fabric in the trenches and add some rock before you place the pipe. The holes in the pipe are placed at the bottom so as to catch any water and make better drainage. Place more rock over the top of the pipes,

The idea of the walls is good but will be expensive to do, so if you decide to go that route, do one wall at a time, starting at the top, to spread out the expense. Be sure to increase the elevation of the soil near your home so that any water will run away to a lower level. You could plant large shrubbery about three feet from your foundation and the roots may eventually stop any water from penetrating your home also.

Hostas do best in the shade, but you can start a plant just by getting a small root from a friend or neighbour. They grow like a weed and fill in very quickly once they get established.

Walls are expensive - think like a permaculturalist - build a SWALE or several swales. Swales can start as a channel dug into the soil that follows a natural curve (or curves) on your property or you can begin at soil level - up to you. The swale is a small, built up section that curves to create a holding area for rainwater which soaks into the swale area. What a swale is composed of is more or less what you can get locally - trash wood piled at the base of the swale, hay on top of the wood, pitch a bit of sand in there and then top with some dirt. Doesn't have to be great dirt, just dirt to hold the shape of your serpentine mini-hill. Now plant some tough plants on your swale - daylillies, black-eyed susans, as examples of full sun plants - you want perennials on the swale and then BACK of the swale where the water will accumulate, plant a tree or some bushes that you like. Their roots will take the rain, the swale will stop erosion and you've created a permaculture design that takes care of your rain/erosion issue on that hillside without spending thousands on retaining walls.

Call the pros, before you have foundation issue$

Similar to my own yard. We have decorative stone walls at different levels.

With the water running down your foundation is being challenged, call in some landscapers and pick their brains on the best affordable solution.