Green Roofs

What is a Green Roof ?       A Green Roof is a plant-filled roof top garden that offers an energy-saving alternative to a typical rooftop. A Green Roof can keep buildings cooler and save energy. The point of a Green Roof is to help companies, house owner, or anyone who has one, save energy with their electricity. Green roofs provide partial solutions to several environmental problems, which are common in urban locations including: storm-water management, reduction of pollution, improved air quality, and quality habitats for insects and birds.       The process is quite long, and takes a while to complete. Start with a waterproof membrane, so it wont leak through your roof. Second add a root barrier. Third put in a drainage system layer. Next add the fiber fabric, this allows water to flow down into the drainage area while holding the soil in place. Than install the drip irrigation. Drip irrigation is an easy way to supply fertilizer to your plants to get them started. Than add the plants. Lastly, add the wind blanket, it limits wind erosion while your plants are placing themselves.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Green Roofs    There are many advantages in having a green roof. The first advantage of a green roof is a reduction on the amount of storm water runoff this is because instead of water just going from the roof of a concrete building onto the ground, a green roof's plants will absorb some of the water. Another big advantage of having a green roof is the reduced urban heat island effect from having too much pavement and not enough wildlife in urban areas. Green roofs increase the life of roof membranes by limiting the amount of damaging UV exposure. Also, green roof's provide ecosystem services in urban areas and increase the amount of urban wildlife. A further advantage of a green roof is the better regulation of building temperatures compared to non-green roof buildings. Green roofs have been shown to increase fire resistance and to improve air quality also. As you can see, green roofs have numerous advantages. Despite all of the advantages of green roofs, there are some disadvantages. One disadvantage is that green roofs initially have a higher cost to build than traditional roofs. They are also costly with repairs. Green roofs also require stronger roof beams to support the layers of the green roof, mostly the soil. One more disadvantage of a green roof is that when they are built in places susceptible to bad weather, such as seismic zones or windy places there is a great chance of the plants not surviving. In conclusion, although green roofs greatly help our environment, they have some costly disadvantages.

Ground Peanut: Arachis pintoi Kingdom: Plantae Division: Tracheophyta Class: Magnoliophyta Order: Fabales Family: Fabaceae Genus: Arachis Species: A. pintoi General information: It’s used as a groundcover in many crops and cover for landscapes. Used for intensively managed grass pastures. The perennial peanut is adapted to tropical climates. It is a plant that originated from Brazil. Water: Perennial peanut grows best in areas receiving an annual rainfall of 40 inches (1000 mm) or more. It can withstand 3-4 months of drought. Nutrients: It tolerates soil with low fertility. Soil Type: Perennial peanut's native habitat is in red, sandy loam alluviums, seasonally wet to flooded. Under cultivation it has proven adaptable to soils ranging from sand to clay texture.

More Ground Peanut          The Perennial peanut plant contrasts many other plants because it does not reproduce by seed. With the lack of this form of reproduction, it is impossible for animals such as birds to help spread the DNA of the Perennial peanut to other natural habitats. Because there isn’t a vast number of the plant, the Perennial peanut is generally uncommon or used for landscaping purposes.  Perennial peanuts have a high resistance to drought, about 3-4 months, which means they don’t necessarily require a lot of maintenance. Not only do they not require much water, but also phosphorous fertilization. Phosphorous fertilizer causes nutrients to build up in the soil and can eventually become toxic. These traits and qualities can be beneficial to the environment because it helps save energy and water

Works Cited Green Roofs: Pros and Cons. House-Energy. Web. 5 Mar. 2010. eLibrary: Science. ProQuest, 2010. Web. 5 Mar. 2010. "Cover Crop - Perennial Peanut (Arachis Pintoi)." Welcome to College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University of Hawai‘i. 01 May 2009. Web. 07 Apr. 2010. <http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/sustainag/CoverCrops/perennial_peanut.asp>. "Guide to Using Rhizomal Perennial Peanut in the Urban Landscape." University of Florida IFAS Extension. University of Florida, 2009. Web. 7 Apr. 2010. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ep135.com. TectaGreen, Green Roof Applicators. 2007. Web. 07 Apr. 2010. "GLWI | Green Roof | Installation." Great Lakes WATER Institute. Great Lakes Water Institute. Web. 08 Apr. 2010. Suchecki, Paul M. "How to Install a Green Roof | EHow.com." EHow | How To Do Just About Everything! | How To Videos & Articles. EHow, 1999. Web. 08 Apr. 2010.