One of my flower beds is on a hill. The first year I thought erosion wouldn't be a problem... but as soon as I loosened the soil, it started washing away in the rain.

I fixed the problem with fieldstone, and created mini retaining walls to hold the soil back.
Whatever you plant, be sure it has good roots too.

Its been a few years now since I put it in and erosion is no longer a problem.... and the rock helps warm the soil faster in the spring.

I am currently building raised beds out of stacked stone. The area in my backyard was somewhat sloped, but it sounds less so than yours. I did level the area somewhat, but I'm using the stone to build into the slope so that the tops of the beds are level. Can you post pictures? Maybe I can make a more specific suggestion. I also built a retaining wall to terrace my very sloped front yard (my street is actually named Hillside, LOL). I am a woman, so it's doable and fun!

Lisa

I have a slope too. I didn't have a way to level it, and the photos sort of lie about the incline. I used landscape timbers for better soil.

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I filled them with leaves, cardboard, and a load of rotted horse manure. The soil that was there was rocky and hard. I've got about 10" of fall over 4' of run. I sort of leveled them out a bit. Kind of.

On my front slope, which leads from the lawn to a retaining wall, I've just been tossing out seeds and planting. I make small a indention kind of like what Beck is describing. I put some soil on the lower side and make 6" flat spots to plant in. It's working so far. It's hot and dry and full of stone and clay too.

If you have access, wheat straw also works to stop erosion and help the seedlings become more established.