3/2013 – Outdoor entertainment: retaining wall with function

Retaining wall with varied form and function

Don’t let the steep slope in your backyard get in the way of your landscaping dreams. A concrete retaining wall with function can bring character and function to any landscape. If you’re looking to change the feel of your backyard and create more entertainment space, a retaining wall may be the answer.

Kanonberg Lifestyle Estate consists of 31 hectares situated at the foothills of Cape Town’s Tygerberg, flanked by the exclusive Welgedacht Estate to the south and the Tygerberg Nature Reserve to the west. The 150 freehold stands range from 730 to 3 000 square metres, complimented by wide-open spaces and walking trails.

Terraforce segmental block retaining wall, Kanonberg Lifestyle Estate

Terraforce segmental block retaining wall, Kanonberg Lifestyle Estate

To construct level space for the new house, the complete site was excavated and needed to be retained to prevent soil erosion. To avoid the wall from becoming too steep and exceeding height restrictions, Decorton, the main contractor on site, designed the Terraforce L12 rockface segmental block retaining (crb) wall to run along the top and the bottom of the property.

The segmental block retaining wall runs along the top and the bottom of the property.

The segmental block retaining wall runs along the top and the bottom of the property.

The retaining wall accommodates a small golf green

The Terraforce retaining wall accommodates a small golf green


The wall was designed with several terraces to accommodate a small golf green, outdoor backyard patio, children’s trampoline and sandpit. At all levels and inside most blocks, plants were established to create softness and texture between the concrete blocks. Along the road facing wall, olive trees and large grasses were placed to add additional texture, and running along the top row a hedge creates further cover. 4×4 Multi Step blocks were incorporated to provide comfortable access to the different levels.

4x4 Multi Step blocks were incorporated to provide comfortable access to the different levels.

4×4 Multi Step blocks were incorporated to provide comfortable access to the different levels.

Overall, the completed retaining wall shows a high-quality ability to combine function with form

Overall, the completed retaining wall shows a high-quality ability to combine function with form


The wall was completed in April 2012 and shows a high-quality ability to combine function with form, while also providing required erosion control, as well as maintaining good visual aesthetics that will continue to improve as plant growth starts establishing itself.