Landscaping Ideas for High Sloped Berms

Zone 3

• Temperatures in USDA zone 3 reach average annual lows of minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Slope-friendly plants for this zone include bugleweed (Ajuga reptans), a spreading, fast-growing ground cover. Ajuga’s shiny, evergreen foliage provides year-round texture and erosion control, while the plant’s blue-purple flowers add a splash of spring color. Shrubs, such as the snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus), also help stabilize slopes. This deciduous species grows to 6 feet tall, has dark, blue-green foliage and blooms with pink blossoms in early summer. Another zone 3-hardy shrub, sumac (Rhus aromatica), also grows to 6 feet tall but spreads almost twice as wide. This deciduous plant is prized for its bright red, orange and purple fall foliage and long-lasting yellow blooms.

Zone 4

• In USDA zone 4, average lows drop to minus 30 degrees. Hardy, slope-friendly plants for this region include the Japanese yew (Taxus cuspidata), a shrub that grows to 6 feet tall with similar spread. This hardy evergreen is easy to grow; it thrives in sun or shade, tolerates drought and grows well in urban settings. A vine that also grows prostrate as a ground cover, the bush honeysuckle (Diervilla sessilifolia) grows well on slopes and tolerates dry, sunny sites. This deciduous plant has red-veined foliage and produces aromatic yellow blossoms. For more ground cover, plant dead nettle (Lamium maculatum). This slope-friendly evergreen spreads quickly and has variegated foliage. It grows well in shaded, cool sites, such as northern or eastern slopes.

Zone 5

• USDA zone 5’s average lows reach minus 20 degrees. The black chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa) thrives in this zone, as well as on sloped berms. This slow-growing, 5-foot-tall shrub has shiny foliage that turns dark red in fall. It blooms with clusters of white-pink spring flowers, followed by dark fruit. For more spring color on a slope, plant violets (Viola spp.) These tiny plants, which grow as perennials or annuals, spread quickly and bloom with white, blue, purple and yellow blossoms.

Zone 6

• Average annual lows in USDA zone 6 fall to minus 10 degrees. Slope-friendly plants for this region include the creeping juniper (Juniperus horizontalis). This low-growing evergreen reaches heights of 24 inches but spreads up to 10 feet wide, providing erosion and weed control. Creeping junipers come in a range of cultivars such as Blue Rug, which has thick, silver-blue foliage. Ornamental grasses have spreading, fibrous root systems that make them an appropriate plant for sloping berms. Sheep fescue (Festuca ovina) grows in dense, blue-green clumps and tolerates shade and drought well. This 2-foot-tall, evergreen grass produces yellow inflorescences in summer.