Gardening is often a fun way to relax from the pressures of the social world, helping you slow down and reconnect with nature. For those who live in the country or suburbs, it’s easy enough to get started, but things get a little more complicated in a city. Fortunately, as long as your building has a flat rooftop that isn’t otherwise occupied, you already have the perfect spot to create a new rooftop garden for your tenants. Not only will the rooftop garden be a selling feature of the property, but it will allow city dwellers to enjoy more fresh air and spend more time outdoors.
What is a Rooftop Garden?
Much like the words suggest, a rooftop garden is typically a collection of plants, including anything from vegetable plants to decorative shrubs, that gardeners and landscapers maintain on a flat rooftop. It can be the top of any building, but apartment complexes are the most common.
The setup might be as simple as a few plants in terracotta pots, or it may be a more complex system custom-designed by a landscaper for the building’s unique space.
Many rooftop gardens actually share features with green roofs, which are roofs planted with mosses and sedum plants to help make use of stormwater runoff and provide insulation.
Benefits of a Custom Rooftop Garden
There are, of course, many reasons to consider having a rooftop garden on your building:
- Ideal for limited spaces: Your tenants can keep their outdoor plants at home even if they don’t have a backyard or balcony space for them. Rooftop gardens are ideal for apartments and condos.
- Better sunlight: Since there are no structural obstructions above the roof to worry about, this garden stands the best chance of getting as much sunlight as it can.
- Pest-resistant: Ground gardens are top targets for weeds and pests, which can make growing certain plants challenging. But when they’re high on the ground, these are no longer threats to worry about.
Designing a Custom Rooftop Garden
Starting a rooftop garden starts with knowing your building codes to ensure you’re allowed to plant on the roof.
Assuming all is well, you’ll need to choose or build your containers. The fun about rooftop gardens is that they’re endlessly customizable, which means there’s lots of room for creativity at this stage. Of course, you will also need to keep plant compatibility in mind. Likewise, you might need to install windbreaks around the plants so they don’t get uprooted.
Next, you must purchase soil rich in organic matter; rooftop plants will have no natural access to ground dirt, which makes this step of preparation particularly important. Once your containers are prepared, dig drainage holes and plant your plants.
Key Takeaways
At the end of the day, rooftop gardens not only look good, but they also give your tenants a great view as well as provide them a quick way to retreat to nature in the middle of the city. But even beyond decorative benefits, there are many reasons to install a custom rooftop garden, including improved air quality and a better rental value.
