Friday, March 20, 2009

New York Rooftop Gardening - Green Roofs

One of the most interesting topics in the New York Metro area is Green Roofs. Because the ratio of building surface area to natural habitat is so dispprortionally large and normal ecosystems destroyed, the regional impact on the environment is particularly significant and cumilative. As a result interest in Green Roofs in places like Brooklyn and Manhattan is high. Rooftop garden construction involves covering the entire roof, or the majority of it, with soil and plants. The term ‘green roof,’ refers to a type of rooftop garden using layers to provide insulation, retain specialized lightweight soil, drainage systems that manage and often recycle rain water. All of this to provide a growing medium for certan types of plants. Since this type of construction is more difficult to create, the assistance of qualified professionals is often required. However, there are many suitable resources available for constructing your own ‘green roof’ system. The first layer of the green roof is applied directly to the roof and is intended to guard against leaks as well as provide insulation. The next layer contains lightweight gravel material for drainage with a filtering mat positioned on top. This allows water to soak through while keeping the soil in place. The final layer includes both the growing medium and plants. Regardless of the type of rooftop garden design, growing mediums should always consist of lightweight soil . The soil application should also maintain a depth that will not only sufficiently anchor plants but support the weight capacity of the roof as well since wet soil can get quite heavy. Plant choices are extremely limited . The dominant genus are succulants, or sedums.

No comments:

Post a Comment