Friday, November 19, 2010

Green Roof Plants - Food, Fiber and Medicine Day Four List

Green Roof Plant # 9 - GRAPTOPETALUM spp. (to most of us a Sedum(?))...


Again, the basic principles each green roof plant possesses include:

* Drought tolerant
* Hardy against inundation and flooding
* Possesses qualities of either food, fiber or medicinal traits
* Social benefit from beauty
* Non-invasive or pest qualities
* Native species to region
* Provides food, forage or communal habitat to wildlife
* Cleans stormwater
* Good plant for sequestering Carbon

Choosing the right green roof plants can sometimes be a challenge for even the most experienced green roof designer - as we commented yesterday - and the day before.

Green Roof Plants - GRAPTOPETALUM spp. Mexican Ghost Plant
I was going to try and list several more green roof plants today however I became bogged down in a very complicated but Wonderful Green Roof plant's taxonomy.


As a biology major in college - with a focus in plants, I find myself still awed at the massive amount of information about plants that I still need to learn and grasp.  Much information is available about plants and their habitat requirements.

The more I learn about plants suitable for green roofs, the more I know I need to learn more.

I started this morning by looking for the Genus and species name of the Mexican Ghost Plant, a succulent growing well on many green roofs here in North Florida.

Common names are confusing - there may be many species with the common name Mexican Ghost Plant.

Not only did I have a hard time identifying the particular species, but I also encountered difficulty in identifying the Genus and even the Family - a very frustrating exercise!

However, the plant I want to talk about is a great plant for green roofs in areas with extended periods of drought yet also experience long periods of rain and inundation.

So, for the Mexican Ghost Plant we will call its family - CRASSULACEAE and we will call its Genus GRAPTOPETALUM and we will not try and identify the species.

However, the Mexican Ghost Plant is more than just a pretty green roof plant!

According to Wikipedia - the Mexican Ghost Plant has medicinal uses - traditionally a liver and kidney support plant, and has culinary uses also - served on salad bars in some restaurants (click here for a new window with the Wikipedia information).

Although the species name listed in the above Wikipedia link is 'paraguayense' the plant is from Mexico and not Paraguay according to some.

For the Green Roof, this plant is relatively cold hardy.  I've seen Mexican Ghost plant survive long periods of sub-twenty degrees F temperatures.  I have seen Mexican Ghost plant survive extremely long periods of drought, and grow in minimal amounts of soil - not only grow but prosper!

Another great internet resource on the GRAPTOPETALUM is the International Crassulaceae Network's website.  Click here for access.

Mexican Ghost Plant survives Florida's hot and humid summertime.  Make sure it has very well drained soil.  Finally, note the dew on the photographed plant above.  Don't forget to install dew catchers on your green roof.

When designing a green roof in Florida and other areas with a similar climate, you would be wise to include groupings of the Mexican Ghost plant.

Again, we will be discussing more species over the next few days.

Feel free to add your comments or email us with your questions here.

Happy green roofing.

Kevin

3 comments:

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otr said...

otr214427
INTERNATIONAL CONCEPT OF WORK FROM HOME
Work from home theory is fast gaining popularity because of the freedom and flexibility that comes with it. Since one is not bound by fixed working hours, they can schedule their work at the time when they feel most productive and convenient to them. Women & Men benefit a lot from this concept of work since they can balance their home and work perfectly. People mostly find that in this situation, their productivity is higher and stress levels lower. Those who like isolation and a tranquil work environment also tend to prefer this way of working. Today, with the kind of communication networks available, millions of people worldwide are considering this option.

Women & Men who want to be independent but cannot afford to leave their responsibilities at home aside will benefit a lot from this concept of work. It makes it easier to maintain a healthy balance between home and work. The family doesn't get neglected and you can get your work done too. You can thus effectively juggle home responsibilities with your career. Working from home is definitely a viable option but it also needs a lot of hard work and discipline. You have to make a time schedule for yourself and stick to it. There will be a time frame of course for any job you take up and you have to fulfill that project within that time frame.

There are many things that can be done working from home. A few of them is listed below that will give you a general idea about the benefits of this concept.

Baby-sitting
This is the most common and highly preferred job that Women & Men like doing. Since in today's competitive world both the parents have to work they need a secure place to leave behind their children who will take care of them and parents can also relax without being worried all the time. In this job you don't require any degree or qualifications. You only have to know how to take care of children. Parents are happy to pay handsome salary and you can also earn a lot without putting too much of an effort.

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For those who have a garden or an open space at your disposal and are also interested in gardening can go for this method of earning money. If given proper time and efforts nursery business can flourish very well and you will earn handsomely. But just as all jobs establishing it will be a bit difficult but the end results are outstanding.

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This is a very vast field and here sky is the limit. All you need is a computer and Internet facility. Whatever field you are into work at home is perfect match in the software field. You can match your time according to your convenience and complete whatever projects you get. To learn more about how to work from home, contact us today on workfromhome.otr214427@gmail.comand our team will get you started on some excellent work from home projects.


Diet food
Since now a days Women & Men are more conscious of the food that they eat hence they prefer to have homemade low cal food and if you can start supplying low cal food to various offices then it will be a very good source of income and not too much of efforts. You can hire a few ladies who will help you out and this can be a good business.

Thus think over this concept and go ahead.

otr said...

otr214427
INTERNATIONAL CONCEPT OF WORK FROM HOME
Work from home theory is fast gaining popularity because of the freedom and flexibility that comes with it. Since one is not bound by fixed working hours, they can schedule their work at the time when they feel most productive and convenient to them. Women & Men benefit a lot from this concept of work since they can balance their home and work perfectly. People mostly find that in this situation, their productivity is higher and stress levels lower. Those who like isolation and a tranquil work environment also tend to prefer this way of working. Today, with the kind of communication networks available, millions of people worldwide are considering this option.

Women & Men who want to be independent but cannot afford to leave their responsibilities at home aside will benefit a lot from this concept of work. It makes it easier to maintain a healthy balance between home and work. The family doesn't get neglected and you can get your work done too. You can thus effectively juggle home responsibilities with your career. Working from home is definitely a viable option but it also needs a lot of hard work and discipline. You have to make a time schedule for yourself and stick to it. There will be a time frame of course for any job you take up and you have to fulfill that project within that time frame.

There are many things that can be done working from home. A few of them is listed below that will give you a general idea about the benefits of this concept.

Baby-sitting
This is the most common and highly preferred job that Women & Men like doing. Since in today's competitive world both the parents have to work they need a secure place to leave behind their children who will take care of them and parents can also relax without being worried all the time. In this job you don't require any degree or qualifications. You only have to know how to take care of children. Parents are happy to pay handsome salary and you can also earn a lot without putting too much of an effort.

Nursery
For those who have a garden or an open space at your disposal and are also interested in gardening can go for this method of earning money. If given proper time and efforts nursery business can flourish very well and you will earn handsomely. But just as all jobs establishing it will be a bit difficult but the end results are outstanding.

Freelance
Freelance can be in different wings. Either you can be a freelance reporter or a freelance photographer. You can also do designing or be in the advertising field doing project on your own. Being independent and working independently will depend on your field of work and the availability of its worth in the market. If you like doing jewellery designing you can do that at home totally independently. You can also work on freelancing as a marketing executive working from home. Wanna know more, email us on workfromhome.otr214427@gmail.com and we will send you information on how you can actually work as a marketing freelancer.


Internet related work
This is a very vast field and here sky is the limit. All you need is a computer and Internet facility. Whatever field you are into work at home is perfect match in the software field. You can match your time according to your convenience and complete whatever projects you get. To learn more about how to work from home, contact us today on workfromhome.otr214427@gmail.comand our team will get you started on some excellent work from home projects.


Diet food
Since now a days Women & Men are more conscious of the food that they eat hence they prefer to have homemade low cal food and if you can start supplying low cal food to various offices then it will be a very good source of income and not too much of efforts. You can hire a few ladies who will help you out and this can be a good business.

Thus think over this concept and go ahead.