What to Plant on an Eroding Embankment?

This morning on our weekly trek to Lowe's, we saw one of the master gardeners who sees our faces every time we step in that door, which is literally every weekend and sometimes a weekday.  She greets us with the lovely "hi, planting again?", and I reply with a "yes, I've got to check your weekly clearance rack you know".  She probably thinks us a bit off, but I don't care.  There is a certain limitless feeling of excitement in what I can do when I walk through that garden center.  And aside from any sale items, Al and I are planning... again.  We are always planning!

The house didn't come fully or even partially landscaped, and with all the rain that we've had over the past two weeks, the embankment at the back of the house is eroding.  Grass is having a tough time taking hold, as the rain washes it out and our clay soil turns to a thick liquid when left unattended.  I would love to put up a retaining wall at one end but that would require more money and expertise than we have at the moment.  The most logical plan would be to plant some low-lying shrubs, grasses and flowering perennials to help secure the ground so that it doesn't wash out after a heavy rain storm.  Here are some ideas:

 Bee Balm

Emerald Gaiety Euonymus (we have this in the front already)

Heather

Blue Star Juniper - it has a soft, fluffy feel to it

Little Bluestem - I think I have this in the front too

Perennial Geranium

Daisy

Purple Fountain Grass

Day Lillies

I think a mixture of textures, heights (none above 3 feet), and colors will look lovely!

The Deck is Finished!

I spent all of last week staining our back deck which is 140 square feet and included many spindles.  It's also about 10 feet off the ground.  We decided to use a clear protectant from Lowe's - Olympic Maximum.  It costs about $33 a gallon which is similar to the better Olympic paints.  The steps to staining a deck are quite simple and in retrospect I did it by myself and wasn't really overwhelmed.  Just make sure you give yourself plenty of time.

Before picture of the deck.

Step 1:  Choose a Stain.  Pick a week with no rain in the forecast.

Originally we went for a Toner stain which contains not only a protectant but a bit of color as well.  Toner stain also gives you an extra year of coverage (4 years instead of 3).  We chose the "Cedar Naturalwood" color but it appeared a bit too red for my tastes.  I would strongly recommend testing the stain in an inconspicuous area before you begin your project.  Had I just jumped in I would have been seriously disappointed.  

Step 2:  Clean Your Deck.

If your deck has any darker areas or mildew it's better if you clean it first.  Ours wasn't too bad but it felt wrong to skip this step.  We used a Lowe's brand deck cleaner which didn't require any scrubbing.  Just slap it on with a mop or sponge or something and in 5-10 minutes you have a beautifully clean deck!  We used an old magic eraser mop.  It dissolved a bit and couldn't reach every nook and cranny but it saved us money on buying a sprayer - which you could also use (apparently).

Step 3:  Let Your Clean Deck Dry for 12, 24, or more hours...

Our deck was dry pretty quickly and despite the Lowe's Lady's advice, who said you had to wait 3 days, I started staining on Monday having cleaned on Saturday.  

Step 4:  Begin Staining.

I started with our railings, the one's with all the spindles.  What a pain!  I used a brush which gave me more control but due to the height of the deck I had to reach over to stain the back of the spindles... my back was not happy.  Because I used a clear protectant it was possible to do smaller sections without getting a striped effect or spots.  I would imagine if you had any color you would have to have a more seamless application - so a sprayer might come in handy.

Step 5:  Give the stain 12-24 hours to soak in and settle.  Enjoy!

I was racing against the downpour that was forecasted for today so I actually finished up on Sunday.  Already the water is beading!  I am very happy with the results and can't wait to show it off.

Not too much color!  All finished!

Honza's favorite Yoga pose:  Downward Dog.  He's such a natural!