5 Benefits of Adding a Retaining Wall to Your Front Yard in the Harrisburg and Camp Hill, PA Areas

A retaining wall is designed to prevent erosion, but it can also become a focal point in your landscape. If your front yard is particularly hilly and there’s not a lot of flat space, you might consider adding a retaining wall. Beyond being an essential part of a hilly landscape, retaining walls also have several other purposes as well. Here are five benefits of adding a retaining wall to your front yard in the Harrisburg and Camp Hill, PA areas.

Combating Erosion

One of the most expensive problems a homeowner can have is an eroding hillside that consistently sheds exposed topsoil and rock any time there’s a rainstorm or a few big wind gusts. This can greatly affect the health of any surrounding plants including the biggest trees and you may find unwanted debris in other parts of your landscape. Worse yet, loose soil could end up against your home’s foundation, or oozing across your driveway. A retaining wall will do the incredible duty of holding the hillside from eroding and even create additional usable space. A particularly tall hillside might require a system of terraces each with its own retaining wall since walls can only be so tall and handle so much pressure from above.

Additional Gardening Space

Most structures are very hard to build on slopes and this includes any sort of garden terracing you might want to install. Plants can even be subject to gravitational forces that pull them down the hill. A retaining wall in your garden area of your front yard will pull double duty as it not only looks sturdy and elegant, but also provides an excellent permanent and stable planting area.

An Air of Elegance

Not only do retaining walls provide an excellent function to your landscape, they can also add an air of elegance to the front yard. Bricks and manufactured stones are made in a wide variety of natural colors that can easily fit any design aesthetic of your home while also complementing the hues of the natural landscape. If you want to go for a more rustic look, a natural stone retaining wall will bring dignified glances to your front yard and enhance your home’s curb appeal.

A Welcoming Entry

The opportunity for a welcoming entry should never be ignored and retaining walls provide a wonderful one. As your beautiful front walkway curves and leads guests up to your front door, a low retaining wall can not only provide structure for an uneven landscape, but an artistic introduction to the design themes of your home and landscape.

Hidden Light Fixtures

Lighting is an essential part of any usable landscape and often light fixtures can become glaring interruptions in an otherwise elegant landscape. One way to rectify the need for light without making imposing light sources is by including light fixtures hidden within your retaining wall. Small lights here lining your walkway will provide the much-needed nighttime visibility that keeps visitors safe and your home even more secure. The lights can be LEDs (light-emitting diodes) that need far fewer replacements and use far less energy than light bulbs. If the retaining wall doesn’t hug a walkway, including lights hidden within will also create much more visual texture to brighten up your front yard, enhancing curb appeal even more.