we have STEEP banks that are planted with OLD, bad looking junnipers. The plan is to pull out the junipers (should we kill them with spray first?) put in topsoil and replant. I need something with a quick root structure and that spreads so the dirt will hopefully not wash away. Also, need hardy plants that need little water. We live in the Piedmont section of South Carolina.
PLANTINGS FOR VERY STEEP BANKS.
you have one of the best places to go talk to poeple about this. Parks nursery. i love going there and they really are helpful. can tell you what you need for your soil type as they are there.
they have wonderful people who will help yo in the public nursery section. i was told how to do a neighbors yard with their help.
Think Verbena.
Heat Tolerant, sunloving ground-cover that spreads quickly with establishing roots every so often when it touches the ground. Very showy colors. I had a soil erosion problem and fixed it with one plant. Every time it rained, the newly placed topsoil kept washing out of place. They look really nice on a slope or even hanging out of a basket. Search around for the different varieties.
Homestead Purple is a nice one.
You may want to check this listing of "Slope Stabilizers" section from the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service. Hope it helps you get started.
http://garden-gate.prairienet.org/selplant.htm
i'd be tempted to let the juniper's well-established root system continue to hold that bank in place. talk to a nursery, as suggested above, to find out how/ to what extent your junipers can be cut back for rejuvination. then, interplant with compatible plants that strike your fancy - while the junipers perform the difficult work of steep slope retention.
I second diggingit's suggestion. Do you really hate the juniper? I have slopes that need stabilization and we were considering juniper, but most of ours don't get enough sun for it.