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Hot or Not?: Growing a Lawn On Your Roof
Washington DC

7-2 green roof 3.jpg

Would you grow a lawn on your roof? We spent a few fun hours in Iceland and came across this house with grass and flowers growing on its slanted roof! We love having plants in our home, but are not sure how we'd maintain a roof garden. Survey and more photos below the jump...

 
 

7-2 lawn roof 1.jpg

Hot! It's green month and we want plants everywhere.

Not. How would you cut that grass?

- Rachael

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7-2 green roof 2.jpg

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Hot or Not?, GREEN IDEAS, Washington DC, Iceland, roof lawn

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Comments (21)

Green roofs are the best.

posted by trygve on July 8th 2008 at 11:07am
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i really want to do a green roof someday but would probably prefer a flat one! and a lawn wouldn't be green where i live, figuratively or literally...so it would be more like little succulents or something.

posted by akostalas on July 8th 2008 at 11:15am
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Looking at this has me wondering..... Is this house abandoned? It sure looks like it could be. Which means I wouldn't want THIS look on my roof.

posted by Daily Nuance on July 8th 2008 at 11:18am
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Yes, this looks less like a green roof than a very poorly maintained regular roof. Green roofs don't usually have dirt and vegetation growing in the gutters as well.

posted by Shawn on July 8th 2008 at 11:58am
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GEESH !!! I have enough trouble with leaks in my roof. Why would I want to have to acutually water it on a regular basis??? It may look rellay cool but who needs another job?

posted by gallupgirrl on July 8th 2008 at 12:00pm
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spell check : actually:; opps!!

posted by gallupgirrl on July 8th 2008 at 12:10pm
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With proper moisture control, green roofs really save a lot in heating and cooling costs. Not to mention their storm water retention helps out and doesn't overload our storm sewers with fresh rain water.
All new homes should have sustainable green roofs with indigenous plants. It's so simple I don't know why people don't do it.
Plus, retrofitting an old roof to accomidate a light green roof isn't as daunting as it seems. A little research and a knowledgeable contractor will yeild great results.

posted by revolution9 on July 8th 2008 at 12:15pm
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We installed a greenroof in DC, and try to get others to do the same. It is an amazing thing in terms of energy savings, rainwater retention, and aesthetics. If you click on greenroof constrction on this flickr page, you can see the process from start to finish.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/81911961@N00/

posted by greeps on July 8th 2008 at 12:19pm
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Flat roof. I like.

This particular installation = ugly. But aesthetics aside its great!

posted by Poor Lil Rich Boy on July 8th 2008 at 1:06pm
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Personally, I really am hoping or the push for urban agriculture, of which green roofs are a branch of.

As stated before, properly done, it can cut both heating and cooling costs, increase the lifespan of the roof itself, and helps deal with runoff and drainage quite well. Also, it can sometimes add to property values in some areas.

Even if you don't live in a major city, a green roof is a great idea, and can be fitted into more suburban and rural designs.

posted by bobthefish on July 8th 2008 at 2:42pm
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How would you mow this grass? Ha ha!, but seriously, it looks like a neglected roof rather than something intentional.

posted by suzy8track on July 8th 2008 at 3:25pm
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you don't mow it; you don't water it. It just is. And it provides great insulation. yeah, it's not a 'neat' and 'tidy' mowed and evenly green lawn, but it's not meant to be either. I've seen these in other scandinavian countries and love them.

posted by wc_canuck on July 8th 2008 at 4:21pm
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What a great idea! It looks wonderful as well. I'm no botanist, but I bet that there are many different types of plants that could thrive to make it more or less aesthetically pleasing (climate to be taken into account of course).

posted by ernieg on July 8th 2008 at 4:26pm
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I swear I have never seen this before, but I love on a flat roof! Greeps: that roof is awesome! I'm jelous.

posted by Amymj on July 8th 2008 at 5:40pm
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With a roof like the one shown above, I wouldn't be at all surprised if a gopher popped out of the ceiling.

posted by btoddster on July 8th 2008 at 7:27pm
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I don't like it!

posted by nadyamadrid on July 8th 2008 at 11:50pm
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When I was young, my mum wanted to grass over our roof... that sadly never happened. It was a 50s split level, and would have looked brilliant.

posted by Cassian on July 9th 2008 at 4:01am
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It cracks me up (and depresses me too) that people are stretching their minds, trying to think of ways to "mow" the grass on the roof.

We've become so...what? suburbanized?... that we can't see grass without imagining a lawnmower. Grass was around for a long time before mowing, people!

posted by Molly Margarita on July 9th 2008 at 6:27am
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I love the idea of a green roof as long as its green in more than just color. It should be sustainable too. Here in Chicago, a roof of non-native grasses would require more natural resources to maintain than is sustainable.

posted by Vivienne on July 9th 2008 at 6:41am
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If it was all one bright green even color it would be nice. It just looks like mold to me.

posted by Snugglitas on July 9th 2008 at 9:07am
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The unkempt look of that particular green roof is very appropriate for the house. It looks very quaint.

posted by Erika in Seattle on July 9th 2008 at 2:16pm
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