More info please. Would leveling the yard harm any of the trees lining the bottom of slope? Would the ”wall or fence” be a retaining wall for the added soil? If yes my guess is it would have to be a stone or poured cement retaining wall & any fence would be on top of that. How deep is your yard from decking to start of slope? How old are the kids who want to throw a ball around in the yard?

ETA: Knowing about the trees is really important. If those are pulled out so yard can be leveled to a property line, you are changing not only your view but also that of your back yard neighbor & your 2 side neighbors. Will this leveling create water drainage issues for your neighbors?

You could also plant shrubs on that slope. If you plant densely, they'll stop the balls at the edge of the flat part of the yard. If you pick a mix of flowering shrubs, it will be attractive and probably cheaper (start with small shrubs or plugs).

Boxwoods will grow in shade.

Thank you! Great questions I’ll have to find someone more knowledgeable about the trees to help me answer. I love them and definitely wouldn’t want to interfere with their health or create drainage issues. You are right that there would have to be a retaining wall first. The yard is only about 22 ft from the deck to the start of the slope. My kids range from 5-10 yrs old.

Planting shrubs is a great idea too— I’d dismissed it when I realized the area is in shade all day but will look into boxwoods. We’re in planting zone 7a if anyone has other suggestions along those lines.

@Bryanna B - to clarify, just in case it helps, my question about age of kids was based on my thinking about how long the ball throwing phase will be. 😊 Sounds like plan is to leave trees in place so that means the potential for damage to roots from digging trenches in front of them does need to be considered. Your yard looks wider than deep - maybe ball throwing direction can be managed? Planting a row of tough shrubs as suggested might work too. More important than knowing your plant zone is your general location for good plant suggestions. The individual zones cover widely different climate types.

Keep as is. It will force your kids to get better aim with the ball or keep the money you save in a ball overboard fund! Too many risk factors in leveling, especially impacting the trees and your neighbors. Great that they have a park they can play in too.

There are plenty of native shrubs that will do well in shade. Some flowering shrubs might not flower profusely, though.

A row of hay bales out of sight- partway down the slope- would stop a ball and not present the hazard of a player running into a fence, shrubs or a retaining wall.

This is all so helpful, thank you. The picture really helps me visualize how we could create some barriers while still taking advantage of the extended natural view (a big fence would make it feel so much more closed in I think). We’re in lower Westchester county, ny (Greenburgh).