Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Summer 2013 - (Page 24)

PlANT PROFILE ON THE ROOF WITH… T PROFITABLE GREEN ROOF PLANTS CONEFLOWER AND YARROW BY: MARGUERITE WELLS he theme of this issue of the Living Architecture Monitor is the business case for green roofs. So, I have been mulling over the economics of growing different kinds of plants. Let’s explore the topic for a minute before getting to the plants themselves. Recently there has been a surge in interest in growing food on roofs—both in non-proﬁt circumstances like community or school gardens, and also with notable commercial rooftop farms. The economics of growing food on roofs is still a thin line of proﬁt squeezed between lots of material inputs and labor. I know it well. Before getting into the green roof business, I was an organic vegetable farmer. But people are funny creatures; they will haggle over the price of your organic carrots, quipping grocery store prices at you as if it weren’t your hourly wage they were arguing over. And then they’ll turn right around and drop $45 on a pretty hanging basket of ﬂowers. We spend less on food per capita than any other industrialized country, and we are largely unwilling to spend more than we do. So if you’re looking to grow something really proﬁtable on your green roof, let me recommend ornamentals. They lack the wholesome angle of feeding people close to home, but from a pure proﬁt point-ofview, they’re likely a better bet. Now, like any other green roof planning exercise, what you want to get out of your roof is directly dependent on what you put on it. You can’t harvest thousands of dollars of cut ﬂowers or hanging baskets from 3 inches of extensive growing media with need natives? sedum plugs or cuttings? mats, tiles or modules? motherplants READ THIS ISSUE ONLINE AT WWW.LIVINGARCHITECTUREMONITOR.COM http://www.motherplants.net

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Summer 2013

Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Summer 2013
Contents
From the Founder
Green Roof Installation Raises Value of Boston Apartment by $2.4 Million
Green Roof Industry Grows by 24 Percent in 2012 & Washington Dc Is #1
Burgeoning Green Roofs and Green Walls Market to Be Worth $7.7 Billion in 2017
Green Roofs Designated as Certified Wildlife Habitats by National Wildlife Federation
On the Roof With … Art Rosenfeld
Estimating Green Roof Benefits
Mind Mapping the Business Case
The Business Case for Investing in Green Roofs in Portland
CITIESALIVE San Francisco Preview
Policy and Standards
Leadership – for the Sake of the Client and the Environment:
Plant – Profitable Green Roof Plants
Project – It Takes a Village: YMCA
Project – Was It Worth It?
New Corporate Members
Professional Calendar
New and Improved Green Roof Training
Submit a Project to the 2013 Awards of Excellence
Journal of Living Architecture Call for Papers
Great Community Resiliency Project Contest
GRHC Buyers Guide
The Case for Green Façades

Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Summer 2013