Hi, I'm no expert, but have a slope in my back yard, about 27 feet high and 60 feet wide. It's pretty steep. Some of it can be climbed on foot, some areas are too steep for that. It's hard clay and was scraped to its shape when the houses were built. It's had very little erosion over 30 years. There are drought tolerant plants planted on it, and some burmuda grass that I gave up the war on years ago. There are a lot of postings on this forum about what to plant. Your soil and climate are different from mine. A lot of plants can be started with cuttings from friends and neighbors. Most people are happy to share their plants with others.

Retaining walls can be had for free and can be done by anyone with some muscle and energy. You can build them out of old tires, which can be covered with stucco or plaster, or not. Also, stacked broken cement makes a great retainer. It's stable, looks pretty good and you can find it on the curb. If you want to make someone happy, just ask them if you can haul their pile of broken cement away, lol. Rocks can be stacked for retainers, but may take more skill. If you keep your eyes open and tell people you know what you're looking for, railroad ties or some other suitable material may appear. You can also mix any number of materials. Check for materials on Craigslist, Freecycle and other classifieds. There are instructions on this forum for building the walls properly.

Ask this question on the Garden Junk forum. People there have great ideas and make lots of good things on the cheap (or free). Hope this helps, Linda

Here is a link that might be useful: Google broken concrete wall images

All those weeds are probably helping. If you are not trying for a grassy lawn and would like something with minimum care requirements, keep an eye out for "wild" slopes nearby. Chances are, what mother nature plants on those slopes is good for erosion control in your area.

Tires! That's perfect, we can get them easily around here. I never would have thought of that.

Thanks!

Two big issues are controlling erosion and deciding how user-friendly you want your slope to be. One or more permits may also be required. I have seen basic engineering equations for retaining walls on-line an in books before but can't remember exactly where and what is required in one jurisdiction is not always the same as in others. In Ontario I am sure you will also want to design the wall for frost heaving and some flexibility. $10,000 for a well built wall under those conditions does not seem unreasonable off of the top of my head. The trick (besides raising the money) is to find a competent contractor. Since you are in the great nation of Canada I might as well also suggest the TV show "Holmes on Homes" (based in Toronto I think) which I enjoy watching here in the USA on cable and which has retaining wall episodes once in a while. You can build your own with segmental block or more improvised materials if you know what you are doing and are willing to do a lot of labor. Maybe you could pay someone just for the plans and permits and then do the work yourself?

Here is a link that might be useful: Ontario Municipal Affairs and Housing

I don't have cable so tv shows are out and getting money together isn't an option. There is no money to be had. Doing the work isn't a problem. My dh is researching the tire wall. So far it looks like a pretty good solution for us.

Good luck. I'm pretty sure you can get basic design spec's free on the internet. Your municipality might have code requirements that can also be looked at as spec's and not just an annoyance from the government.