This study proposes a comprehensive framework, based on an upper-bound approach, for assessing how vegetation enhances wall stability through two primary mechanisms. The two mechanisms are reinforcement from root systems and hydrological reinforcement through transpiration-induced soil suction. Both contributions are integrated as additional internal energy dissipation terms within a logarithmic-spiral failure model. New expressions of earth pressure in unsaturated soil are derived, considering the influence of vegetation. The active earth pressure acting on the retaining wall is obtained using sequential quadratic programming. The proposed method is validated against classical non-vegetated solutions, confirming its accuracy. The results show that vegetation significantly reduces active earth pressure, with the extent of reduction depending on soil type, root distribution, and transpiration rate. In clay soils, both mechanical and hydrological effects are important, while in sandy soils, mechanical root reinforcement plays the dominant role. The effectiveness of vegetation is influenced by root depth, density, and diameter, with practical design insights provided through parametric charts. This work offers a theoretically consistent and design-oriented tool for evaluating vegetated retaining walls, emphasizing the coupled hydro-mechanical interactions between plants and soil.
Wu et al. (Sun,) studied this question.