what can i plant on a retaining wall

Plants for retaining walls: 12 ways to brighten your boundary

• 1. Prostrate rosemary (Image credit: John Richmond / Alamy Stock Photo) Hardiness: USDA 7-10 (UK H4) ...
• 2. Nasturtium (Image credit: Imagebroker / Alamy Stock Photo) ...
• 3. Snow-in-summer (Image credit: teffen Hauser / botanikfoto / Alamy Stock Photo) ...
• 4. Rose (Image credit: Rex May / Alamy Stock Photo) ...
• 5. Silver nickel vine (Image credit: thrillerfillerspiller / Alamy Stock Photo) ...
• 6. Bellflower ...
• 7. Firecracker ...
• 8. Ivy ...

Full Answer

Which plants will improve the appearance of retaining walls?

The natural vein in this retaining wall will accentuate the upscale look of your front yard while adding a more subtle pattern, which improves the curb appeal instantly. Do not forget to grow some beautiful flowers, such as asters, coneflower, daisies, or hydrangeas in the retaining wall to spruce up it.

What type of plants are needed for landscaping?

The 10 Plants Every Garden Needs

• 1 Rose. Roses are lovely and romantic in any garden setting, whether you have a tiny urban plot or a large, country back yard.
• 2 Hydrangea. Hydrangeas are just about perfect: With hundreds of different varieties, they thrive in almost any climate.
• 3 Succulent. ...
• 4 Herb. ...
• 5 Fragrant Plants. ...
• 7 Climbing Vine. ...
• 8 Ornamental Tree. ...
• 9 Flowering Shrub. ...
• 10 Edible Plants. ...

How a retaining wall can help protect your landscape?

Retaining walls can offer all of these great benefits, and more:

• Create more usable space on your property
• Help to redirect water and prevent flooding
• Create a focal point
• Create an opportunity for multiple levels of landscaping
• Level out your property
• Hold back soil and prevent erosion
• Enhance the beauty of natural elements in your yard

How to lay landscaping fabric behind a retaining wall?

How to Lay Landscaping Fabric Behind a Retaining Wall

1. Measure the distance from the top of the retaining wall to the bottom of the excavated area behind it, across the bottom at ground level and back up ...
2. Add about 10 percent to the length and width you measured, and cut the fabric to size.
3. Lay the fabric in the space between the wall and the slope so the entire surface area of each is covered.

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What can you not grow on a retaining wall?

Trees with aggressive, spreading root systems spell trouble behind retaining walls. The same trees that damage home foundations, septic systems and pipes cause retaining walls to tumble.

Can you plant against a retaining wall?

Trees and plants can soften the space around the wall, so it's natural to want to plant shrubs and bushes around the retaining wall. When installing new trees, look for slow-growing trees without aggressive roots. Small, flowering trees, such as the redbud or saucer magnolia, can do well near a retaining wall.

What can I plant in a rock retaining wall?

The best plants for rock walls are alpine plants, succulents, and plants that are drought resistant. Generally, they can thrive with small root structures and little water or nutrients.

How do you landscape a retaining wall?

1:362:58How To Build a Retaining Wall - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipDirectly behind the blocks lay down landscape fabric behind the wall leaving enough excess to reachMoreDirectly behind the blocks lay down landscape fabric behind the wall leaving enough excess to reach the top. Then fill in directly behind the wall with gravel.

What can I plant on a brick retaining wall?

Retaining Wall Plants To Make Your Landscape Stand OutCandy Tuft.Aptenia Cordifolia.Creeping Phlox.Lampranthus.Clematis.Sour Fig.Lobelia.Trailing Gazania.More items...•

What to plant in retaining blocks?

The right plantsLampranthus spp. ( vygie)Carpobrotus edulis (sour fig)Gazania rigens (trailing gazania)Helichrysum cymosum subsp. cymosum (gold carpet)Asystasia gangetica (creeping foxglove)Dimorphotheca jucunda (osteospermum)Pelargonium peltatum (ivy-leaf geranium)Plectranthus neochilus (spur flower)

What plants will grow in a stone wall?

Woody Mediterranean herbs are a good choice, like lavender and rosemary. Evergreens like ivy and creeping Jenny will trail down the wall too. If the space is shallow, try alpine plants – they are naturally found in rocky spots and will grow well in poor or shallow soil. Sedum and saxifrage are always good choices.

What plants will grow in stone?

Browse our list of plants suitable for rock gardens, below.Pasque flower.Pinks.Thyme.Houseleeks.Aubretia.Trailing bellflower.Saxifrage.Gentian.More items...•

What plants trail over walls?

Some are better suited to wall tops while others trail beautifully from tubs and baskets.1) Trailing Aubrieta. ... 2) Phlox as a Trailing Plant. ... 3) Lobelia. ... 4) Ivy Geranium. ... 5) Trailing Plant “Bacopa” ... 6) Trailing Verbena Plant. ... 7) Busy Lizzies. ... 8) Fuschias.More items...

What can I do with a retaining wall?

Retaining walls not only help to hold in soil and mulch around your flower beds, but they can also raise your flower beds from the ground....Raised flower beds have many benefits, including:Limited weed competition.Less soil compaction from foot traffic.Fewer pests.Less soil contamination.Better control over drainage.

Do retaining walls need landscape fabric?

Filter fabric is an essential step in the process of building a retaining wall because it lets water through but prevents dirt, bark dust, or other landscaping from migrating into your gravel base.

How long do retaining walls last?

How Long Should A Retaining Wall Last? Stone retaining walls should last somewhere between 40 and 100 years or more. Wood retaining walls last around 40 years. Stone and concrete retaining walls last between 50 and 100 years.

How do you plant around a retaining wall?

Place low plants close to the top edge of the retaining wall, since the roots of trees and larger bushes may damage the wall, while confinement by the wall could damage the plant. Place smaller plants at the edge so that they don't block the view of other plants that may be placed behind them.

How close can you dig next to a retaining wall?

I think your idea is very cool, but I would not dig closer than 2 or 3 feet to the wall base, or behind the wall within 2 or 3 feet. A lot depends your soil type and the back fill. Talk to an engineer.

How close can a boundary be to a retaining wall?

Basically, in NSW, if your proposed retaining wall is closer than 900mm to a boundary line, then you will need a building permit before construction can start.

Is it OK to put soil against a brick wall?

But brick walls are foundational elements of a home or landscape. The soil near them can be compacted and contain clay, sand, and filler that do not help plants thrive. This makes landscaping against brick walls a challenge. Before you start gardening against a brick wall, you'll need to check out the soil.