Roof landscaping is a new phenomenon that is gaining popularity today. If you live in your cottage, then no problems with this will arise. It is only necessary to choose a suitable horizontal surface. For example, it can be a roof over a terrace or a bathhouse. It remains to turn it into an amazing garden.
But what should residents of megalopolises do, whom this idea also captures and carries away? They can also afford to break the roof garden. To do this, you can use a loggia or an extension, which is sometimes done by residents of the first floors instead of a balcony. If you try, you will get an amazing corner to relax.
Well forgotten old
Indeed, no matter how this idea is presented today, it was beaten many centuries ago. Remember the turf strips that covered the roofs in Europe and Russia. This allowed to improve thermal insulation, as well as protect the thatched roof from fire. After the rains, the sod sprouted, and a real roof garden grew.
Of course, he had a low decorativeness. Mowing grass on the roof was very problematic, so the grass grew in a chaotic manner. But landscape designers went further. They develop dozens of projects, according to which herbs and flowers are grown directly on the roof surface, that is, it is covered with a layer of soil. In other cases, they come up with options for placing plants in special pots. As you can see, a roof garden is an idea that can be implemented in a variety of ways.
Features of life in megacities
What causes the growing popularity of roof gardens today? In large cities, the building density is so high that there is almost no room for greenery. People lack freshness and clean air, which is why they try to make such living corners for themselves. The roof garden can also contribute to the ecology of the city, if this idea takes root in megacities. Today there are many companies that develop and implement such projects. Landings can be small and serve as decoration. But if you want, you can grow full-fledged trees.
Commercial buildings
I immediately want to say that the roof of the house is a neutral territory that does not belong to anyone. Firstly, floors 9-12 are not suitable for implementing such an idea. Few people see this garden, and it’s difficult to take care of it. Secondly, attempts to perform some work on the roof are usually prohibited.
Therefore, the roof of the house of a commercial building is a more attractive place. Such infrastructure objects are visited by a lot of people, often the front end has an understated visor, which can be accessed additionally. Thanks to this, it becomes possible to implement such a project.
Main advantages and disadvantages
Roof landscaping naturally regulates the microclimate in the building. Such a room itself is cooled in the summer and warmed in the winter. Among the main advantages:
- Good heat and sound insulation.
- Compensation of the area that the house takes away from nature.
- You get a recreation area for relaxation.
The only drawback of organizing a roof garden can be considered a complex arrangement. You will need the help of not only builders, but also professional designers.
Gardening Methods
Even a small roof garden will require quite some serious effort. Modern technologies allow you to implement almost any landscape objects. It can be a green carpet or a rock garden or a full garden. But this is not an easy task. It is necessary to take into account the technology of the roofing device. Moreover, you still need to consider the features of roofing plants. Roof landscaping can be intense, simple intensive or extensive. They have differences in appearance and functionality.
Intensive landscaping
If you own a large cottage and a fairly significant amount of free money, then you can try to master this option. It is supposed to create a full-fledged roof garden. This is a place for walking and relaxing, here you can spend dinner parties. The selection of plants is very wide. They can be located on one level or on different.
An elegant option is the garden, decorated with park sculptures, featuring an elegant design. It is very complicated and expensive. A multi-level garden will also require constant care. It is logical that only a thin layer of soil can be placed here, which means that there will be little nutrition for plants.
Simple intensive landscaping
The essence remains the same, but the implementation of the idea is much simpler. This is a planting on the roof of grasses and shrubs. The choice of a landscape designer is much less. Therefore, we are no longer talking about creating a work of art. But you can choose simple plants that are undemanding to the conditions. And of course, this option will come out much cheaper. And if you use special flowerpots for planting, even a novice gardener will cope with the task without involving builders.
Extensive roof gardening
In this case, the role of man in the life of the garden is minimal. The roof is not exploited in any way, and a person’s access to it may be limited. Typically, plants for a rooftop garden are selected from among those that successfully grow in the area in the wild.
The main task of the designer is the choice of flora - resistant, tenacious, which is able to recover quickly. This is the easiest way to use the usable area of your roof. Used herbs do not require watering or other care.
Garden application
If you decide to break flower beds on the roof, you need to think carefully about where they will be placed. For example, the roofs of garages and gazebos use an extensive type of landscaping. In this case, the load on the building will be minimal. Such a roof does not need to be further strengthened. Therefore, to implement such a project, you only need the desire of the owner himself.
Another thing, if you want to do intensive landscaping, that is, to create a real garden for relaxation. Do not forget that on pitched roofs you can grow only an extensive garden, that is, you need a suitable flat surface.
On a flat roof, you can give vent to your imagination. It all depends on the amount of free time and finances, but, in principle, any project can be implemented. Do not forget about the strength of the building itself and the load that it can endure. You will definitely need an expert opinion on this matter.
Garden device technology
Builders know how the roof is built. Here the layers are located exactly the opposite.
- Application of cement-sand screed. It is important to make a bias towards the drain.
- Screed surface treatment with primer.
- A prerequisite is vapor barrier. It is bent over all vertical surfaces so that the level exceeds the insulation. All seams are mandatory sealed.
- Next comes a layer of geotextiles, usually polypropylene.
- Waterproofing layer.
- Root layer. It is needed so that strong plants do not destroy the roots of the coating.
Soil for plants
Roof gardens and balconies require nutritious soil. If the plants are in tubs, then a layer of pebbles or gravel is laid on the base. They are covered with concrete slabs from above - and you can create a combination of flowerpots.
- Where there will be plants, it is necessary to lay a drainage layer. It is connected to a water drainage system. This is gravel or pumice that conceals drainage pipes.
- Next up is the filter layer of geotextiles.
- Soil substrate. It is not recommended to take ordinary land. This should be soil, sand, perlite, peat, clay, that is, mixtures recommended for a particular type of plant.
Planting of vegetation
Plants must be resistant to sudden changes in temperature and be able to survive even with complete freezing of the soil. Usually these are grassy and ground cover plants, dwarf species of woody plants, coniferous and deciduous shrubs. It is best to choose samples from domestic nurseries, as they are adapted to growing conditions.
If you want to plant a tree on the roof, then choose the following options:
- Irga is a small shrub that attracts with abundant flowering and berries.
- Hanging birch.
- Mountain ash.
- Pine.
- Maple ash.
All of them are good on the roof, where volume and color diversity are required.
Herbaceous plants
Rarely what kind of roof garden project does without the use of herbs. If you do not plan to use additional watering, then it is quite possible to do with plants that are resistant to drought. Most often these are stonecrops of different types and varieties: caustic, eversa, false and others. The company they will make up the young offspring, fescue and thyme, cloves and hawk. These plants can be planted with roots or scattered in the form of cuttings on the ground and covered with mulch. In addition, landscape designers give such recommendations:
- In the spring, the garden looks quite modest, since the plants are weakened after winter and have not gained color. Therefore, it is recommended to add onion plants. These are crocuses, daffodils, scylls.
- As the simplest option, you can offer the use of lawn grass. It is best to use the meadow type option, as it does not require maintenance. But without additional watering, it grows poorly.
- For bright flower beds, you need to choose plants that do not lose their attractiveness during the season. This is a soft cuff, irises, fallaris, goldenrod, a variety of geraniums.
Winter gardens
You can talk about the design of the roof garden for a very long time. Another option is the arrangement of a winter garden. To do this, a glass dome is installed on the roof. Depending on the size of the building, you can calculate the need for additional heating and choose plants that will delight you all year round. The winter garden is already almost a greenhouse, where even delicate crops can be grown if desired.