Rooftop gardens are excellent building additions that help property owners meet sustainability goals. Whether large or small, there are many advantages to placing plants on top of your structure. Here are the benefits of a rooftop garden.
What Are Rooftop Gardens?
A rooftop garden is a sustainable building method that heavily plants greenery for various uses. They’re an excellent alternative to thin eco-roofs and can conserve energy, reduce pollution and provide habitats for wildlife.
Architects often design gardens to support a building’s residents and visitors. They can stroll along walkways, enjoy a meal on a terrace or sit along a plaza. Rooftop plots also provide excellent opportunities for growing food.
Modern rooftop gardens take inspiration from versions found thousands of years ago. Researchers discovered they first came from Mesopotamia. The ancient Ziggurats constructed them between 4,000 and 600 B.C. They formed stairs along a pyramid structure with trees, shrubs and flowers, providing the perfect place to escape the heat.
Today’s green gardens have many benefits, with more nations promoting them as an environmentally and economically sustainable design method.
Where Rooftop Gardens Are Growing
These gardens are becoming more common worldwide. Many areas in the U.K. embrace the concept thanks to its environmental and economic benefits. Here are some of the most popular places in the country for rooftop gardens.
London
There is no competition when it comes to London’s rooftop gardens. In fact, they now provide more combined green space than Hyde Park. They allow more people to spend time in nature without leaving their homes or workplaces and combat pollution in the city.
Manchester
Manchester has the second most rooftop gardens. The city has a long history of roundtables, with leaders looking to make the location greener. Manchester continues to add more green spaces, including these gardens.
Liverpool
Northwest Liverpool has many structures built with rooftop gardens as top priorities. Many businesses have rooftop bars and restaurants in the gardens, promoting them to locals and tourists.
Glasgow
Glasgow focuses on improving communities through rooftop gardens. City of Glasgow College allows students to learn about environmental preservation and provide fresh food to the community.
Outside of the UK
Internationally, many countries are making efforts to incorporate rooftop gardens into their infrastructure.
Switzerland, France and Canada have laws instructing that all buildings have environmentally friendly rooftops, increasing the number of rooftop gardens.
Australia and the United States are both adding rooftop gardens to their cities but do not have laws mandating it.
7 Benefits of a Rooftop Garden
The increase in rooftop gardens worldwide is well warranted. Here are seven benefits you’ll see if you add a rooftop garden.
1. Increased Building Value
Having green space is a significant plus for buyers. It’s even more critical in an urban area with few opportunities to embrace nature. Roofs are often underutilised spaces, making them excellent locations for private and public gardens.
Green space can increase residential properties’ selling prices by as much as £381k. The gardens provide many opportunities for food and entertainment spaces, which can also increase your return on investment (ROI).
Increasing your building value boosts the appeal of the building and the surrounding community.
2. Nicer Air Quality
The U.K. is the second largest contributor to global carbon emissions and greenhouse gases. These pollutants travel to the atmosphere and contribute to climate change. They also make it harder to breathe.
Plants take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen, cleaning the surrounding air. People spending time near them give their lungs a break. This powerful filtering effect can reduce the risk of developing respiratory illnesses, including asthma.
3. Less UHI
Another impact of city emissions is the urban heat island (UHI) effect. Rooftop gardens can significantly reduce UHI levels, providing a more comfortable living space.
The island UHI is the heat that often encapsulates urban areas. The sun warms concrete much faster than grass and trees. Roads, sidewalks and buildings are more prominent in cities than the countryside and stay warmer throughout the year.
The effect is most obvious at night when the sun goes down and temperatures decline. The heat trapped in streets and buildings slowly releases, heating a city’s air and creating a significant temperature difference compared to rural areas. This leads to more air conditioner use, causing a higher carbon footprint and energy bill.
Rooftop gardens can intercept the sun’s rays before they’re stored in urban infrastructure, helping temperatures level out.
4. Lower Energy Costs
You will likely see a significant energy bill decrease with a rooftop garden. That’s because the gardens allow your building to use energy more efficiently. Plant life provides insulation, helping to keep structures cool in the summer and warm in the winter.
Your air conditioner will work less when the internal building temperature stays lower. Rooftop gardens have the same impact on heating systems, thus saving you money.
A National Research Council of Canada study found that gardens can modify temperature fluctuations, contributing to how temperatures flow through buildings.
5. More Bird Habitats
Urbanisation has many benefits, but one of the disadvantages is the removal of wildlife habitats. While you probably won’t find a deer on your roof, birds, bats and other flying animals can seek refuge in the gardens.
These roofs are great for building nests or grabbing a snack during migration. Planting and adding fuel sources and trees for birds around your rooftop garden helps them thrive in an environment humans conquered long ago.
Birds and other visitors are an excellent source of relaxation and entertainment for humans interacting with the garden. Birdwatching and chirping can be enjoyable and calming for visitors.
6. Reduced Noise
Noise is a part of life, especially in cities. However, you have the power to reduce the amount of outside sounds entering your home or business. Plants serve as excellent soundproofing, with denser leaves working most efficiently.
A combination of plants and soil absorb, deflect and reflect sound waves from traffic noise, sirens, loud conversations, animal sounds and more. This dampening helps you concentrate, relieving you from the stressors common in an urban environment. It can improve your happiness and encourage positive physical and mental health.
7. Better Stormwater Management
Proper stormwater management is vital for improving water quality and reducing runoff. The living plants in rooftop gardens need soil, mulch and other organic materials to thrive. These items absorb rainwater, preventing it from entering stormwater pipes or sewage drains.
Runoff during storms can lead to floods and sewer issues. Even if the plants can’t hold the water they receive, the garden will slow runoff speed, reducing the risk of those issues.
Embracing Rooftop Gardens
There are many advantages to adding rooftop gardens to infrastructure. Utilising plants to create peaceful, sustainable entertainment and relaxation locations is a major advantage to most buildings. These gardens can conserve energy, filter the air and reduce carbon emissions, creating healthier communities.
Rose Morrison is a home living writer with over five years experience writing in the industry. She is the managing editor of Renovated.com and loves to cover home renovations and decor to inspire everyone to live their best DIY life. When she isn’t writing, you’ll find her baking something to satisfy her never-ending sweet tooth.