If you have a sloped yard, you may want to develop the land by putting in terraces. Slopes can work in a lot of cases, but there are key advantages to terraces. Here are five signs you should consider terracing.

1. You Want to Prevent Erosion

With a slope, stormwater runs straight down it, and if you live in an area with high rainfalls or even just the occassionally heavy rainfall, that can dislodge the dirt on the hill and cause it to run down into the rest of your yard or onto the walking path. This process of erosion can make it hard to grow plants on a sloped yard.

With terracing, in contrast, you no longer have a sloped yard. Rather, you have several flat spaces that resist erosion effectively.

2. You Want to Increase Gardening Space

Generally when you work with a land developer to put in terraces, you increase the available space in your yard. That is ideal if you want to do vegetable gardening or even if you just want to put in some ornamental plants. Due to the erosion issue, it's much easier to plant in a terraced lot.

3. You Want to Add a Patio or Another Structure

In addition to increasing your available gardening space, terraces can help to increase your available outdoor living space. If the land next to your home is severely sloped, you will need to terrace in order to put in a patio. Terracing can also help with strategically leveling the landscape for adding sheds, playsets for children, gazebos and other structures.

4. You Want the Yard to Be Easier to Navigate

Trudging up and down a slope to get through your yard can be difficult, but when you terrace your yard, it can be easier to navigate. You can opt for short, shallow terraces so you can hop from level to level, or you can work with the land developer to add a concrete set of stairs in your yard when he or she puts in the terraces.

5. You Like the Aesthetics of Walls

To visualise how your yard will look terraced, imagine cutting shallow steps into your slope. Typically, this requires moving some of the fill dirt out of that area, but so that the terraces don't collapse onto each other, you need to add retaining walls on each level. If you like the visual appeal of that, then terracing is definitely for you.

To learn more, contact a land development specialist with an interest in landscaping and terracing in particular.