Utilizing a slope between the house and greenhouse to create our West Terraced Garden to grow vegetables that do better in the ground.
As mention previously in this Terraced Vegetable Garden post, we have rather steep slopes on both sides of our house. We built two terraced retaining walls on the east side of the house and now it is time to take care of the west slope between the house and the Greenhouse. This slope is much steeper and wider than the one on the east side of the house and it was getting difficult to maintain.
A 3-Tiered Solution
We hired the same landscaper that we had worked with previously, to build three huge retaining walls needed for this slope to create three levels of planting area. We also got them to put in posts for fencing and hail protection purposes which we would build build after they have completed their work.
The work began in the third week of March 2024 with a little snow still on the ground.
The guys worked hard and completed the project in early April. They topped up each level with good soil for growing. We are very happy with the work they did. They even cleaned up the place (as seen in picture above) nicely for us.
Adding in Fencing and Hail Protection
Our work began after they had completed theirs. We fenced up the area with 2″ x 4″ and also ½ inch wire mesh. We put in a lower fence for the side closest to the greenhouse. The top of the posts were bridged by 2″x4″ lumber to support anti-hail netting. We completed our work in 4 days with all hands on deck.
Irrigation
Next, we had to work on the irrigation. They had provided the ¾ inch main lines for the irrigation. Rori-San had to put in the ½ inch drip lines.
Vegetables Planted In the West Terraced Garden 2024
The first things I planted at the end of April 2024 were potatoes in the top two terraces. I planted 15 varieties of potatoes with seed potatoes from 2023 and purchased ones from the garden centers in and around town. Potatoes are easy to grow and require little effort once they are planted.
The potatoes grew really well. The soil was rich and loose.
I also planted lots of other vegetables, blueberries, corn, and flowers to add color to this West Terraced Garden. It was and is a joy to work in this garden. The retaining walls double up as a seat for me to rest and put my gardening tools. 🙂
Here is a closeup look at some of the other vegetables, herbs, fruits, and flowers planted in 2024. Although I do not have much success with growing sweet potatoes here in Wyoming, I continue to try. Hopefully some day, a micro climate will emerged in this garden for them to form tubers. They do grow but the tubers are kind of long and wiry. Cabbages, dill, leeks, carrots, beetroot, and hot peppers grew well. Blueberries, chokecherries, marigolds, irises, and Rose Mallow (looks like hibiscus) put on a good show.
Similar Tools Used in This West Terraced Garden Post
This post contains affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy here.
Dewalt Atomic 20V MAX* Circular Saw, 4-1/2-Inch
Black & Decker Corded Drill, 5.5-Amp, 3/8-Inch
Makita XFD12Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 1/2″ Driver-Drill
Metal Roofing Screws: (250) 10 x 1″ Galvanized Hex Head Sheet Metal Roof Screw.
Fencer Wire 14 Gauge Galvanized Welded Wire Mesh Size 2 inch by 4 inch
48″ x 100′ 1/2inch Hardware Cloth Galvanized Welded Cage Wire, 19 Gauge
Mitef Anti-aging Orchard Anti-hail Netting, 26.2x50ft
2024 Harvest
It was a very successful first year harvest from the West Terraced Garden. We had lots of potatoes, cabbages, corn, beets, carrots, leeks, hot peppers, and dill. Also, a decent amount of blueberries, which were such a treat.
It was a lot of work to let them dry and brush them clean for storage and use throughout the year. I took care to keep the varieties separate and kept seed potatoes for the next year.
In November 2024 when it was already turning cold, I harvested the beets, carrots, and leeks.
Vegetables Planted In the West Terraced Garden 2025
In the spring of 2025, I again started with seed potatoes that I had saved from 2024. They were all sprouted and wrinkly, and ready to be planted.
This time I planted them on the lowest level of the West Terraced Garden, which also happens to have the largest growing area. Some had to be planted on the slope closer to the greenhouse.
Crop Rotation At West Terraced Garden
I try to do crop rotation for healthier soil and so I grew mainly corn, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbages on the highest level in the West Terraced Garden.
Sad News and Personal Loss
I was very distracted in the spring of 2025. My Mom never recovered after my Dad’s passing at the end of 2021. She was not doing well and had several bad falls. After a 4 year struggle, she went home to be with the Lord in June 2025. 😭🙏
I never got round to populating the second level of the West Terraced Garden. I left it fallow the entire growing season.
Mega Hailstorms
Apart from personal loss and challenges, we also had terrible weather in 2025. We had several successive rounds of hailstorms which destroyed all our hail protection and caused damages to the barn, greenhouses (we do have a smaller Stand-Alone Greenhouse), vegetables gardens, and orchard. Repair work was tedious and very expensive. I will share the work we had done in future posts.
A Silver Lining
Those of you who are parents will understand what it means to have a child leave home, even if it is for a good reason. In the summer of 2025, my youngest son was offered an opportunity for career advancement in a different city, several hours drive from home. We thank The Good Lord for the opportunity, but we do so miss having him at home.
As such, we have been visiting him every month or so to help him settle down in his home, away from home. He is doing really well and is finally into cooking. I get to stock up his kitchen and have been coaching him via messaging. 😍
Diminished Productivity From The Garden in 2025
You may have noticed that I was quiet in 2025. With all that had happened, it was certainly a very eventful year. Obviously, I was not able to devote as much time as I would have liked to the gardens. We had the smallest harvest since we started in 2022 but I am thankful for whatever God provided, which was still plenty for us.
For some reason, pink and purple potatoes did a lot better in 2025. The yellow potatoes were a bit disappointing. My favorite Natascha and Nicola yellow potatoes only produced sufficient potatoes for me to use as seed potatoes for 2026. Hopefully, they will do well this year.
The Potato Tally
In case you are wondering, here are the 2024 and 2025 potato varieties and totals we harvested. 😊 I have saved seed potatoes for each variety for planting in the coming spring.
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