The beauty of using geo-synthetics include:
- Lighter weight,
- Ability to wick water - irrigation through capillary action,
- Cohesive, monolithic pre-planted shapes and designs
- Allows for root inter-weaving,
- and more.
Take a look at the way roots grow into the non-woven material. One of the bonuses of using a green roof fabric is its high surface area of fiber, affording anchoring opportunities for the green roof plants, capillary irrigation and fertilization and providing a place for biological activity to break down stormwater pollutants.
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| Green Roof Fabric with Green Roof Plant Roots Growing In The Weave |
Importantly, the market now has some really innovative fabrics available for use, especially for stormwater cleaning and pollutant/nutrient removal applications. For instance, I've been working with several fabrics whose manufactures have shown the material to be quite effective in removing phosphorous, nitrogen and/or oils and greases. Combined with nutrient removal capabilities of green roof soils, you can design in a one-two-three punch for cleaning stormwater!
Advances in technologies are allowing new approaches to green roofs on a daily basis.
We will be posting more articles on the advantages and case histories of green roofs designed and installed with fabric systems soon.
Always, you can email me for additional information here.
Be sure to check out the new Green Roof Design Blog and the new Green Roof Plant Forum.
Happy Green Roofing!
Kevin
Happy Green Roofing!