On Mon, 8 Mar 2021 16:23:59 +0000, Andrew
wrote:

On 08/03/2021 15:32, AnthonyL wrote:
On Mon, 8 Mar 2021 13:07:55 +0000, Andrew
wrote:

On 08/03/2021 12:15, AnthonyL wrote:
On Mon, 8 Mar 2021 03:42:56 -0800 (PST), Tricky Dicky
wrote:

On Monday, 8 March 2021 at 11:13:51 UTC, AnthonyL wrote:
The upper part of the back garden is quite steep and during one of the=20
storms early last year a whole heap of shrubbery, earth slipped down=20
and over the retaining wall. A couple of trees were dislodged also.=20
=20
There is a lot to clear up and I'm wondering about putting the=20
dislodge earth into sandbags and putting on top of and then behind the=20
retaining wall. This has the advantage of finding somewhere to put a=20
ton (guessing) of clay type soil, helping to stabilise against further=20
soil erosion and maybe helping to provide a platform to climb up and=20
maybe seed some suitable ground cover.=20
=20
I guess I don't actually want it "flood proof" as I'd not want rain=20
build up behind.=20
=20
So do you think the plan is workable? And what of the many varieties=20
of sandbag would be most suitable? It'll hopefully be there for a=20
while.=20
=20
Any other tips?=20
=20
--=20
AnthonyL=20
=20
Why ever wait to finish a job before starting the next?

You might be better off using Gabions filled with stone. You do not need th=
e enormous type you often see on motorways there are a variety of sizes. Ju=
st the facing side needs to be aesthetically arranged and the back filled i=
deally with limestone chips although any old rubble will do. They will let =
water through so no drainage problems and if you leave pockets of soil you =
can even get a few creepers to take hold.


Thanks, looks a good shout and am tempted to mix and match with
sandbags. I'll have a closer look.


Send us a photo of the damage. Structural retaining walls needing
to hold back a considerable amount of wet soil need careful thought.

It is quite a difficult location to get a good view of what has
happened.

This picture https://ibb.co/qJCGgvZ is taken on the top of the path
that I am clearing so to the left is the 30' or thereabouts of steep
area going up to the back of the property and the right goes down
about 20' to a lower area.


That's a very steep slope !


Indeed. It is basically rock with some clay/top soil. I haven't
tried to see if I can make any impression on it for maybe using
staples of some sort. I guess that ivy had spread all over and some
of it turned into shrubs and trees.

The retaining wall has not been damaged as far as I can see, I haven't
exposed all of it, and the wall did not extend at that height for the
whole length of the path that I am exposing.

From what I can see the wall does not seem particularly well made
or substantial.
I wonder what sort of foundations and rebar reinforcement it has ?.


I'm not sure how you deduce that. The retaining wall has retained
what was behind it, it just couldn't stop what came over the top.

There are a couple of trees and more shrubbery further on blocking the
path which winds down to the right past all that mess. I've got an
axe, saw and a chainsaw.

A slope that steep is probably stabilised by roots. Proceed with
caution before you remove too much.


Oh I'm not touching the vegetation that is above the retaining wall.
But some of it has slid down which is what caused the damage to the
shed. A couple of ivy trees, an Ash I think, and a Hawthorne that is
now leaning against an adjacent tree. That might need a tree surgeon
as it is a bit big. It's slid down about 2m.


--
AnthonyL

Why ever wait to finish a job before starting the next?