Friday, August 19, 2016

Keeping it Green

Hubby and I took a tour this past spring.  This was an important tour, and that is why I am sharing it.  No monuments, insides of cathedrals, or massive flower gardens on this tour.  This was a tour about challenge and change.  Recently, the Washington D.C. government began encouraging property owners to make "green roofs" a part of their building plans.  New commercial construction is required to have a certain percentage of roof space either solar or green.  This growing plants keeps buildings cooler in the summer and reduces heat loss in the winter, it reduces stormwater run-off which is a prime reason for water pollution, and green roofs reduce noxious organic compounds as well as can provide food!  Go here if you want more information on all of this.

Buildings have to insure structural support for such a project and many buildings cannot afford the change over, but a good number can!

Our first stop was the University of District of Columbia that began their project refurbishing an old greenhouse that had been used to teach botany and agriculture.  They also were studying food security...how long could their neighborhood/campus go without access to food in an emergency, for instance?





Their rooftop grew flowers, herbs and succulents and emphasized that pollinators do climb several stories to feed and pollinate!

Then we moved on to a condo building near the Potomac River and right across from the Kennedy Center.  (Rich people do not live here as there are some subsidies...but it is way out of my price range!)



Their change to providing a buffer of succulents also added a nice patio for the owners who lived here.


So many of these projects used succulents because they require virtually no maintenance...just the occasional weeding.


And, of course, the view of the Kennedy Center and river added to these features.

Next we went on to visit the American University program which has worked for years on a program of recycling, greening and environmental living with their students.


The above slows runoff from sidewalks and patios before it goes into the storm drains.


They had their own bee hive on one of the rooftop gardens.


This used to be a flat and hot parking lot above.


They admitted that getting students to partipate could sometimes be a challenge!!

Our final stop was at a Latin restaurant that had its own herb and "decorative greens" roof garden.  The chef gave us a personal tour after our delicious lunch.




This growing plants on roofs has been done for centuries, of course.  But it is nice to see cities renewing this effort.  Every little thing to keep us healthier and cooler.

15 comments:

  1. Here in the Pacific Northwest, I see quite a few mossy roofs, which usually means they are being eaten up but it's pretty nevertheless. Love these beautiful rooftops! :-)

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  2. An interesting tour, thanks. There is a mill visitor centre near my daughter's in Exeter (UK) that has a roof of succulents. It can be seen from a footpath above and looks great as well as acting as an insulator.

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  3. If we could ever afford to repair this place properly, i'd love solar panels. Having some rooftop greenery would be nice, too, as long as my black thumb didn't interfere.

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  4. Great information. Thank you for sharing!

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  5. You continue to educate us all. Great post.

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  6. I always like to see herbs growing somewhere outside a restaurant. There is a project on Anna Maria Island that is a commercial development dedicated to all kinds of green technology. Otherwise Florida (the sunshine state) kind of distresses me for its lack of visible commitment to sustainable energy. I see way ore solar panels in VT (the green man state, but could be the cloud covered state much of the time). I tell myself it is probably because VT is much smaller so i just may be a density thing. But then I hear the FL governor speak on any topic and I become distressed again.

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  7. we, as a culture, became far to enamored with 'modern' inventions. glad to see we are going back to earth friendly ways.

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  8. Great tour. Even better that there are places doing this. Our condo has begun working on Xeriscape style plants replacing water intensive plants as we live in an arid corner of WA state. It surprised me how many people were resistant to it.

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  9. At least something positive is happening in the Capital with these plantings.

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  10. This is fantastic! Even without contemplating the environemntal gains from these gardens, the contribution to human happiness is in itself worthwhile.

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  11. It's a wonderful concept and endeavour.

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  12. What a brilliant idea - such an excellent way of improving the environment.

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  13. This is wonderful. I cannot imagine the association allowing us to grow green things on our roofs here. We are not well constructed, and just the thought of adding more weight to our building is a bit frightening. What a nice and important tour you have been on. We are back now after our brief tour. More details later.

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  14. Interesting tour, pictures and your commentary. Thanks! Given our drought situation here in Southern California where I live in the foothills of northeastern Los Angeles County we'd best stick to solar panels on our roofs. We are minimizing grass lawns so can set up drip systems with various type gardens. I should resume my container gardening I ceased after my husband died and at least grow lettuce and tomatoes. Practical as I am, I think about what the complications might be with solar panels or a roof garden when it was time to re-roof.

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  15. It’s a brilliant idea which has been around in the UK for a couple of decades at least. People put plant roofs on shed and outbuildings and there are some private owners who have ‘roof gardens’ but not that many.
    Solar panels are taking off too, more than green roofs, actually.

    I think people should stop laying concrete over their front gardens here and keep hedges and planted soil, rather than all this obsession with hard-standing for cars. It’s a matter of being willing to put in a few hours work a week, but too many aren’t. Which doesn’t stop them complaining if their roads get flooded.

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