Native Plants

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants

See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

rate this answer

2 ratings

Saturday - April 16, 2011

From: Buford, GA
Region: Southeast
Topic: Erosion Control
Title: Preventing erosion on a sloping lot
Answered by: Janice Kvale

QUESTION:

I am trying to find a native plant to use on a sloped area in my back yard to help prevent the slope from eroding away (zone 7- N. Atlanta, GA). I want something evergreen, between 6 to 30 inches tall, and somewhat fast growing. The slope gets about a half day's sun and ends in a natural wooded/stream area. Thank you!

ANSWER:

My goodness! Georgia must be a hilly place as we get many requests for slope plantings there. I am going to consider your request specifically but you may want to check other responses to this problem. To do so, click on Mr. Smarty Plants on our web site, in the upper right corner under Search put "plants for a slope in Georgia", and be amazed at the response.

To prevent erosion on a slope, you want a plant that forms a dense, fibrous root system. That usually means grasses, sedges or ferns. Grass tends to grow tall; ferns and sedges are evergreen and closer to your height preference. I've selected some plants close to matching your height requirements. Light requirement for a sun-loving plant is 6 or more hours daily, for part shade 2-6 hours, and less than 2 hours for shade. Many plants are quite tolerant of any amount of light and/or moisture. Here are a few for you to consider.

Grasses

Bouteloua curtipendula (Sideoats grama) 2-3 feet; sun, part shade.

Bouteloua hirsuta (Hairy grama) 10-18 inches; part shade.

Muhlenbergia schreberi (Nimblewill) 1-2.5 feet; part shade, shade.

Schizachyrium scoparium (Little bluestem) 18-24 inches dense mound, will shoot stems to 3 feet in fall; sun, part shade.

Sedges

Carex cherokeensis (Cherokee sedge) 12-18 inches; part shade.

Carex texensis (Texas sedge) 10-12 inches; sun, part shade.

Carex blanda (Eastern woodland sedge) 1-3 feet; sun, part shade, shade.

Ferns

Polystichum acrostichoides (Christmas fern) 1-2 feet; part shade, shade; easily established.

Asplenium platyneuron (Ebony spleenwort) 12-18 inches; part shade, shade.