[hammers07]

My allotment in on quite a steep slope

I would like to try and create a stepped environment with level areas on each step
but don't really know the best way to start. Any advice greatly appreciated.

[Trillium]

I never was good with calculations but you'd need to decide just how wide a suitable bed width would be to work with the slope you have. For a steep slope, anything 2-3 ft wide would work. You'd also need to decide how much labour is involved to slice into some of the slope to 'square off' a section which you'd use to fill a stepped bed.  And also decide on what you'd use to create 3 or even 4 sides of the raised beds. Considering the work involved I'd stay away from very short term materials like pallet wood and go for something more solid like 2x4 or 2x6 tanalized wood, or even blocks of some sort, all depending on how long you plan to stay at this allotment...and what the allotment would allow. Always check your rules first.

[woodburner]

How steep is your slope?
I have a slight slope at home and a slightly steeper slope at my allotment. I'm doing lazy beds running across the slope. I thought I'd end up with a terraced effect but i'm actually getting one side simply not as 'high' as the other.

[gregmcalister]

My plot is on a bit of a slope and I used a mix of old and new timber (scaffold planks, gravel boards etc) to create a sort of terrace.  Just hammer a couple of stakes into the ground to hold the wood in place and back fill to create a series of flat beds. I don't bother with anything at the sides. It's relatively cheap to do and looks not too bad when it all planted up.

[Salmo]

You have to be careful when you level the soil out that you do not just pull soil from the top side of the bed to fill the hole against the barrier. If you do this you will have double the depth of top soil at the bottom and may just have subsoil left at the top.

There is a technique to avoid this happening that involves a sort of double digging. To do this you will need to how to double dig which is in every gardening book and no doubt somewhere on this website.

Open your trench as usual, up/down the slope. Instead of just turning or breaking the second spit move some from the top end into the bottom end so that the whole bottom of the trench is level. Now turn the next spit of top soil on to it. Repeat the process across the bed.

[realfood]

Our allotments are on a steep slope, but I do not find any problems in this. The drainage is good and they are easier to dig provided you dig facing the slope.
The soil is an even depth, no maintenance on terracing, no cost to construct terracing, no drying out of the soil at the terrace edge. One adjoining plot has been terraced and she has constant problems. It is not worth the effort!