Many of the masonry improvements you make to your backyard will be both functional and beautiful. However, few masonry features can be as useful as the retaining wall. With an essential primary function in a backyard as well as anywhere in your landscape, a retaining wall can be one of the most necessary improvements to a landscape—but it can also go beyond pure functionality into the realm of a work of art. Here are five ways retaining walls can be both functional and beautiful in your Troy and West Bloomfield Township, MI, backyard.
Related: Why Landscapers Near Me Suggest Including a Retaining Wall in a Landscape Design in Troy, MI
Reducing Erosion
The forces of nature are constantly working against sloped and hilly landscapes. A retaining wall can be built anywhere up to 6 feet high in a single-wall arrangement (we recommend checking with your landscaping contractor to see if the wall needs engineering). For higher slopes, a series of retaining walls can be built in a terraced system of multiple walls up to 4 feet high each. With the assistance of a retaining wall, your sloped landscape can remain stable for many years.
Masonry Continuity
Masonry can add a sense of permanence and long-lasting beauty to a landscape. The shades of color and variations in texture can work together in gorgeous arrangements to harmonize with the outdoor living spaces, landscape, and home whether you choose natural stone blocks, decorative concrete blocks, or concrete blocks clad in a stone veneer. Adding a natural stone veneer is a relatively quick way to add natural elegance and change the look of any existing masonry feature—this is a way to integrate existing masonry features with a new wall, outdoor fireplace, outdoor kitchen, and so on. When you have multiple masonry features in your landscape that each follow the same design aesthetic, the space will feel more integrated and complete.
Expanded Usable Space
When a slope is excavated for the installation of a retaining wall, the amount of usable space will be increased. The horizontal space adjacent to the retaining wall can provide a new home for an expanded patio, a new walkway, a seating area, and practically any other landscape feature you can fit in the space. Even above the wall, land can be shaped to provide additional usable space.
Vertical Improvements
A retaining wall, especially a tall one, can be a major focal point in the landscape. When it’s treated as a design element and not just a functional object, it can really shine. A wall provides plenty of vertical surface area which you can improve or integrate according to your needs and landscape design aesthetics. You can add vertical planters on the side of the retaining wall. A water feature or outdoor fireplace could also be integrated into the wall—and if you’re a fan of outdoor art, creating some niches in the wall could be a beautiful way to display art or found treasures. Bench seating can be incorporated into a taller wall (with the wall serving as a backrest), and shorter walls could be made chair-height to provide ample overflow seating.
Creative Outdoor Lighting
A retaining wall is the perfect place to integrate landscape lighting in an unobtrusive way. Inside a retaining wall, you can also hide the wires and other infrastructure necessary for lighting—and the wall itself will be illuminated to show off its textures after dark.
Related: Landscaping Companies Suggest These Ideas for a Retaining Wall in Rochester Hills, MI Area
