How to secure a backyard retaining wall or drop for toddlers
A backyard drop or retaining wall creates a dangerous fall hazard for small children, making it difficult to let toddlers play safely outside. Homeowners can use dense plantings, shrubs, or physical barriers like fencing to block off the drop and keep kids away from the edge.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Installing a deck railing along the retention wall
- 2Fencing off the high area using a wood or PVC picket fence
- 3Putting up a physical barrier like a temporary orange snow fence
- 4Consider boxwoods and rhododendrons
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“We just bought a new home, the backyard has quite a large drop (1 meter at the highest point) & wraps around most of the backyard. Any ideas how I could make this safe for my 2 small children!”source ↗
“Would appreciate ideas on what to EASILY plant and maintain between the arborvitae trees (middle of pic to far right of pic) to keep my toddler in the yard.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 3How to keep a crawling baby safely contained while doing chores
- 3How to stop dogs from ruining yard paths
- 2Should an outdoor heat pump be bolted down?
- 4How to fix yard erosion without a major landscaping overhaul
- 2How to stop rabbits from digging up your yard
- 19How to decorate outdoor space under stairs without permanent changes