Plant loss plant loss is a common issue on green roofs and can happen for many different reasons.
Green roof maintenance problems.
Sedum is popular because it s claimed to be low cost less growing medium low weight less implied cost to strengthen the structure below and considered fit and forget i e.
Extensive roofs require less watering and fertilizing but they require at least yearly inspections to remove unwanted self seeding plants.
A typical extensive sedum or meadow roof will only require limited maintenance.
The exact level of maintenance needed will depend on the type and desired purpose of each specific installation.
Unless design deficiencies are corrected the problems they cause will likely come back.
A faulty design of a roofing system can cause costly problems.
The plants will not be damaged by walking on them when conducting this maintenance.
According to pierce one of the most common roof problems is incidental water ponding.
An extensive green roof is almost maintenance free but your roof garden will always need a little maintenance.
Design deficiencies cost a lot of money to correct and they can only be fixed by replacing the roof.
They are strong enough to be able to compensate for this.
The green roof will no doubt generate lots of interest so it is important to create a site specific maintenance plan to keep it looking and functioning properly.
Let s take a look at some common green roof myths and see if they er.
Low or no maintenance o m.
If you re noticing gradual or very quick plant loss let us highlight what some of the issues may be.
Maintenance for intensive green roofs can be labor intensive and expensive.
Issues with the membrane drainage.
So much so that sedum roofs dominate uk green roof specifications comprising perhaps as much as 85 by area of a 100m annual market.
Common green roof problem 1.
While extensive green roofs are generally considered low maintenance landscapes they do require specialized care at regular intervals especially during the period of establishment.
Green roof temperatures can be 30 40 f lower than those of conventional roofs and can reduce city wide ambient temperatures by up to 5 f.
This includes removing weeds carried by the wind and applying fertilizer several times a year.
1 2 in addition green roofs can reduce building energy use by 0 7 compared to conventional roofs reducing peak electricity demand and leading to an annual savings of 0 23 per square foot of the roof.
It is perceived to be one of the largest barriers to their installation.
All green roofs and walls will require some form of annual maintenance.