Native Plant Patterns and Historical Rainfall Trends, Predictors of Green Roof Plant Success

Climate and weather patterns are the most significant determining factors of what plants will go on your green roof project and so, rather than turn on the TV I like to look at historical weather maps.

National Weather Service's Historical Rainfall Maps

Green roof plant modeling process considers light and wind to be the two primary design variables for factors affecting green roof plants.  Sunlight relevance to green roof plants and for that matter even ground level landscape designs is usually referred to in terms of 'Photosynthetically Active (and Reactive) Radiation, or PAR.  Too much PAR and the plants can burn, desiccate and wither.  Too little PAR and the plants fail to grow.

Along with PAR is the photosynthetic pathway of the green roof plant and a host of other survival mechanisms such as photoperiodism, phototaxicity and phototropism.

Wind impact too is a design variable that must be accounted for during green roof plant layout.  Strong desiccating winds can harm green roof plants with as much severity as PAR overload.  Wind can pull so much water out of a leaf that the plant's vascular system will be overwhelmed and interestingly, no matter how much green roof irrigation is added to the planting bed, the plants still die.

Micro-irrigation usually alleviates the stresses of long droughts and so on those green roofs, available rainfall impacts may not be as much a controlling design variable (though still extremely important) as wind and light.

Still I find it very interesting to study rainfall patterns across the U.S. and across the world.  Nature has laid out and sorted the different types of vegetation across our continent in a manner relating to wind light and also according to rainfall amounts.

Yes, it is a simple and very broad generalization to say that following Mother Nature's lead supports project landscape or green roof plant potential success.  

When I look at the above map depicting historical rainfall amounts published by the National Weather Service, I see three main, broad patterns.  The Northwest and the East (red and orange areas) receive most of the rainfall across the U.S.  Broad leaf dicots and C3 monocots fill these regions.  Florida and the Central Plains (green areas) receive less than average precipitation and are vegetated with great stretches of grasslands.  Here in Florida the pine flat woods which make up much of the state are filled with C4 ground cover grasses such as the Andropogons and Sporobolis species (if you live in Pensacola though you may want to choose wetland plants for your green roof due to all the rain they have been receiving lately).  Finally, the areas depicted by the least rainfall amounts (less than 20 inches per year - light blue geographic regions) are inhabited by cacti and other succulents.

So if I were designing a green roof for an area outside of Florida I'd think of this map first.

I may or may not end up following Mother Nature's lead after examine a complicated host of other factors, including client intent and if I choose not to follow then my green roof planting design better be spot on in producing the ecology my selected green roof plants will require.

The roof is a seriously harsh place to grow plants.  Use of Mother Nature's millennia of trial and error as guidelines for selecting green roof plants is smart green roofing.  It is hard to beat local native plants on the roof or across the ground.

Post-dissection Repair Everyday Challenges, Vertigo and Dizziness

I don't want to fall so I pace myself and have learned how to look for the signs of a vertigo or dizziness onset.

Post-dissection repair cycling has its own set of challenges, but is good PT and good for my mental state too!

I am also learning to recognize some of the post-dissection repair triggers.  This is good because I do not want to fall.  Falling and cutting myself or breaking a blood vessel while on Warfarin could be bad.  As it stands I still have a bruise and lump on my left arm after a small tumble almost two months ago.  Any type of trauma where bleeding is involved can have serious results while on anti-coagulants.

Most of the time I do not black all the way out and if I do it is only briefly so it seems.  But the sensation starts with a quiet ringing in my ears and head.  Very quickly my vision goes from ok to grey out.

When this happens I need to lower my center of gravity quickly.  Sit down Kevin, sit down now.  Falling over while sitting on the ground is much easier on my body than a tumble from way up there where I usually am in a standing position.

These sessions typically occur when I transition from laying or sitting to a standing position, though they can happen anytime during the day.

I suspect that they are a result of my very low pulse rate (less than 40) and lower blood pressure than what I have been used to for most of my life (now running 110/65).  Possibly though the dissected descending aorta and the huge false lumen hog most of the available blood leaving my heart, also contributing to the dizziness.

Either way, it is the new normal for me.  I am slowly learning to deal with it.

If I feel like I a going to pass out I sit or lay down.  I just need to reduce the risk of trauma from a tumble.

Honestly, a couple of times when I was out hiking last year I got so dizzy for so long I thought I was going to the great hiking trail in the sky, sat down, held the cross and hearts hanging around my neck and waited.  But the dizziness left, like it always has so far.

Yesterday on my bike I had a similar incident and had to sit down until the vertigo and fuzzy vision left.  Falling off a bike would be bad too.  So as soon as the ringing starts in my ears and the tingling begins in the top of my head I find a nice grassy area, dismount and plop myself down.

The doctor and the medicine containers all warn of dizziness.  Yes, the whole thing is an inconvenience  but it is the new normal.

So those of you out there with seriously dissected aortas on all types of meds who live with the lightheadedness, I can relate.  You are not alone.  It is a strange new normal.

Daily Medications and Travel, Don't Leave Home Without Spare Meds!

Travel is not something I frequently do.  My body is not really up to the stress and of course, not having a driver's license, transportation is difficult if not via a bicycle or hitched ride.

My recycled travel pill bottle

But when I do go somewhere I need to make sure I have access to my medications.

Like clockwork, my heart beat begins to accelerate once the morning dose of metoprolol starts to leave my system.  Likewise with a diminishing concentration of Losartan, my blood pressure rises.  If I do not take my afternoon beta-blocker and blood pressure meds then I invite a good chance of AFib or VTach to kick in.  VTach and AFib are bad influences on a shredded, torn aorta.

Even more important is the Warfarin.  A mechanical aortic valve requires clot-free surroundings and freely flowing blood to operate properly.  Clots like to form around foreign objects inside our bodies.  Warfarin helps protect me from valve issues by mitigating clotting action.

Leaving the house requires me to find my way back to the house in time to stay current with strict medication routines.  This applies to any travel away from the house, be the trip one mile or one hundred miles in distance.

At the end of the day I need to find my medicine.  My life depends upon it.

Even the area where Dr. Bates installed the Dacron graft over my ascending aorta, begins to hurt if I skip a dose of Metoprolol or Losartan.  I am not talking about a three or four pain level either, rather one much higher up on the pain scale.

In order to alleviate potential pain and panic I now carry a one weeks does of all my meds everywhere I go.  Sure I probably don't need that much with me at all times, but having  a 'safety net' of spare meds alleviates potential panic.  Panic generates adrenaline, something I don't need with a dissected descending aorta.

I've been carrying these spare meds around in an old prescription pill container.

There are probably nicer or better spare end cases but I like my old pill bottle.

Just knowing my magic pills are there, inside the plastic bottle is a comfort.  When I leave the house without them I always immediately find a way back home to retrieve them.  I honestly can not imagine not having them with me, even on a short trip across this side of town like a walk up to the corner library.

Just shaking the container and hearing my pills rattle around inside is often the only thing I need to do in order to slow my pulse down.

Sometimes something so seemingly insignificant and little can really make a difference in the quality of life for people with disabilities, like myself.  

Getting Through A Connective Tissue Disorder Day

My embolistic hit brain needs things laid out clearly or panic, vertigo and unending uneasiness set in.  I sit down then, put my head in my hands or lay down under the window and become immobile.  At least I want to.

My Connective Tissue Disorder Life Day-Bloom

Many times the lack of clarity leads me to wander around the room or house through a confusing mental fog.  I need structure and order during my day.  I need an easy to understand roadmap that helps me keep moving forward, something to held avoid the confusion stroke related dyslexia and ADHD brings.

So when I lay awake at night staring at the stars out the window, I see my day and my week and the year in the form of a big circle, like a clock, probably due to looking at clocks now for fifty seven years.

Even fresh ground coffee in the French press does little to clear out the fog.

But pictures so help.

Since I love flowers I thought I would take the 'clock' concept of a day and turn it into a blossom, a bloom, a 'day-bloom'.

I have printed my day-bloom out and attached to the kitchen refrigerator.  The kitchen refrigerator is an important place to me because it is where I usually end up after wandering around wondering.

When I open the stainless door a flood of bright light rolls out of the cold ice box.  I usually stand still for several minutes mesmerized by the potential snacks and cold air enveloping my feet.  Then the thought of sardines in the pantry and the humming sound of the refrigerator compressor kicking in shakes me out of my zombie like state and I shut the door.

Now my day-bloom will be there, right in front of my face to remind me of what I think I need to be doing.

Yesterday while riding in the vehicle with a friend I kept falling forward and couldn't keep my eyes open, probably because events of the last couple months have given me an excuse for not focusing on my day-bloom schedule.  Remembering the doctor has told me that my number one job was to 'stay alive', I am going to try and stick to consistent physical therapy, exercise and rest.

Using pretty pictures is more fun than a bulleted list.

I can't even seem to keep my eyes open to write this post and it is only 10:20 am.  Struggling with the side effects of the meds controlling a barely beating but loudly beating heart when it is behaving is tough.

Now, life seems like  it may contain only a few really important things; like family, friends and Love.

My day-bloom reminds me of this.

Even when I do not have my reading glasses with me.

Because I can see the hearts and the smiling sun.  And one more smile for me.

Florida Low Impact Development, A Native Plant Bioswale Success!

The Lasalle Street storm water bioswale is growing into its third spring, a little over two years old.  I know because my aorta dissected during the middle of the project's schedule. Ugh.  A first year plant and project review can be read here while photos and several posts of the original planting project can be found here.

Native plant Bioswale, Lasalle St., Jacksonville, Third Spring's Growth

Today the array of native plants installed by a marvelous group of volunteers has grown into their own prime, lovely Florida grasses, native shrubs and the wonderful cypress tree, Taxodium spp.

The Native Plant Bioswale was originally planted in late 2011

Bioswales are rapidly becoming one of the more popular approaches to cleaning urban storm water runoff and most are using native plant species.  The University of Florida IFAS Extension Service has produced a helpful, informative publication on the design and benefits of urban bioswales for Florida cities.

The Bioswale has matured into a prime example of a successful low-impact development project

We think of plants on green roofs providing many benefits, including;

• Sequestration of Carbon and mitigation of CO2 greenhouse gasses
• Positive production of fresh oxygen daily
• Cleaning rainfall runoff by filtering out particulate matter and attenuating flow rates
• Uptake and sequestration of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous
• Habita creation for small to large wildlife and birds
• Beauty for us humans
• Urban Heat Island Effect mitigation - cooling of the cities
• Keeping our creeks, lakes and rivers clean
• and so much more

Bioswales provide the same benefits as green roofs.  Bioswales are like a green roof but are located directly on the ground instead of a rooftop.

Bioswales, like Florida Green Roofs provide an array of ecological and environmental benefits

Plants are so amazing, especially Florida native plant species.  They work 24/7 to help keep our world clean and that is just the start of what they really do for us!

Lasalle Street Native Plant Bioswale's Third Year Growth

Magna Cum Laude and Off to College, Daughter With Marfan Syndrome Overcomes Challenges

Jincy received the Magna Cum Laude award last night during her Mantanzas High School awards ceremony.  It brought a tear to my eye.

Daughter with Marfan Syndrome Graduating Magna Cum Laude

Although she is just seventeen, turning eighteen this summer, she gives me and so many others inspiration each and every day.

After dual enrolling in college while a junior and senior in high school, she faced academic challenges, but despite being several years younger than other students Jincy went on to achieve almost a 4.5 GPA where 'A' = 4.0.

This was notwithstanding the fact the fact that she was right in the middle of her dad's long, hard post dissection recovery period with multiple heart surgeries.  She subsequently learned that her and her brother's aortas were not only beginning to dilate but that she was also faced with other quite difficult Marfan Syndrome health challenges.

Jin volunteered with the Humane Society, working with homeless dogs and cats throughout her late teens, worked with orphans in Honduras and volunteered with Marfan Foundation benefits like the Tommy Tant Surfing Classic held every year in Flagler Beach.  She wrote poetry, taught herself guitar and ukelele and cleaned her elderly grandparents house.  As of late she has been a 'mother'-big sister to her teen nephew and niece whose mother recently suffered a brain aneurysm and has always tried to advocate for disadvantaged groups of people, no matter what their issues were.

Sure, she showed her spirit in ways I did not approve of, like the time when she climbed out her window, leaving a bunch of pillows under her bedspread and a pumpkin pie under the sheet for a strange looking head and face.  She climbed up to the top of our two story house when two years old, seriously frightening her mother and would take off as a toddler, crawling straight out into the ocean waves.

I envy her youthful and unquenchable zest for her adventures and life ahead, around the corner.

She wants to major in Communications while attending University of South Florida (USF).  Her studies will continue to be a challenge for her and she will need to work hard to support herself economically as well as academically.  I am thankful USF is providing as much help as they are.

But she can do it and the desire to overcome her challenges is what fuels her drive and successes.

I am so proud of her.  For now she has showed those Marfan challenges just who is boss.

Tree Ring Music - Melody in the Urban Core

I love plants.  When I heard about tree ring music on the record player, I had to share it here.  And we do have trees on some of our green roofs, like the Grancy Greybeard atop the Breaking Ground Contracting Green Roof.  I like the Acer music so much.  Enjoy!

For a full listing of tree ring music see Bartholomäus Traubeck's website: http://traubeck.bandcamp.com/album/years

Florida Green Roof Plant Root Structure, Horizontal Root Architecture

Green roof plant architecture is an important biomechanical component of all green roof design, construction, installation and maintenance activities.  In the end a green roof is first, foremost and all about the plants.

Florida green roof plant root architecture - beautiful horizontal root structure

Without the happy, thriving plants, there is no green roof.  Possibly a brown roof but not a green roof.

I think the Florida extensive green roof root structure depicted here in these photos is simply beautiful.

Green roof plant root architecture -  horizontal root structure growing into anchor

An understanding of green roof plant root architecture is one of those fundamental design talents that every green roof professional should possess.  Some of you will have learned about green roof plant root architecture from years of observation, hands-on planting and study of how green roof species grow, others through educational programs.  I examine root structure across green roofs every chance I get.  

My preference is shallow soil media and unimpeded horizontal growing space for green roof plant roots.  I do not like sectional barriers that may limit horizontal root growth and ultimately cause root circling-root bound growth patterns.

These grasses possess good green roof plant root architecture - not too aggressive but sturdy

Another reason I prefer unimpeded horizontal root growth opportunity on a green roof is because I believe green roof plants will over time, relocate themselves or their offspring to the best place on the roof for their particular species survival.  Yes, plants do move through root biomechanic mechanisms.  It is poor planning to restrict green roof plant root architecture any more than necessary.  Just think of how many times you may have pulled a plant from a nursery tray or pot with twisted and circling roots that have practically strangled the plant.

An anchor system may keep plants on a roof during tropical storms

In addition to catering to the green roof plant through design of open space for root growth to occur we like to provide the roots an anchor to grow into.  There are many different approaches one can take when providing an anchor, including cables, mesh, netting or fabric.  By permanently attaching the anchor material to the roof you create a green roof plant growing system that may be resilient to tropical storms or cyclone winds.

Unimpeded root growth prevents strangulation of green roof plants

Using this approach we have created green roofs that have stayed in place when blown with 130+ MPH winds.

The grasses in these photos show this principle in practice.  Using a small, mock up green roof growing system these plants have embedded their roots into a nylon fabric, creating an impressive anchoring form of root architecture and growing in a well defined, horizontal fashion.

A good green roof plant architecture will create a monolithic growing mat with plants anchoring each other

While some prefer deep plantings with roots reaching down vertically, we find horizontal root structure strategically places roots in an optimal position to absorb those frequent one half to two inch afternoon rainfalls here in Florida.  Rain water usually stays in the top inch or so of the green roof soil media.  With a horizontal growth pattern, green roof plants can take advantage of this rainfall where deep roots may have less rain reach down into deeper soil horizons.

If you are wondering, the photographed soil media contains less than 5% organic material.  The bark-looking chips are actually ground recycled rubber tires.  This is an experimental soil media, one we do not use on actual green roofs due to fire ratings.

Know your green roof plant architecture.  Remember, in the end a green roof is first, foremost and all about designing a growing system that keeps the green roof plants happy, healthy and surviving in the long term.

Intense Rooftop Aquaponics - Amazing Rooftop Garden!

Check out this impressive Rooftop Farm - Aquaponics - garden video.  It is amazing just how much food is being grown within a small rooftop area!

Efforts like these are truly inspirational and may hold the answer to feeding the world's future population.

Green Roof Roof Drains Reference Links

Sizing Roof Drains for Green Roofs (and All Roofs In Fact) is Important

I spent a good hour last night worrying about a new green roof we are working on, and how it would drain with the roof drains designed by the project architect.

Right away I will say that I am not qualified to design roof drains.  Sizing roof drainage is a function for a qualified architect or engineer, not a green roof plant person.  However, I still worry.

Living in Florida I have seen some heavy and prolonged downpours.  Last night in fact, across the panhandle area of western Florida, rainfall totals reached almost 24".  That is a lot of water to move off the roof.

Of course storms dumping huge quantities of water do not happen every day.  But I still want my green roofs to drain.  Most green roof plants do not like 'wet feet' so to speak and I certainly do not want the green roof plants to float off the roof.

Yes, I ultimately trust most architects and engineers on their designs for they are accomplished professionals.  But for those occasions, like last night I feel better after a second opinion.

Now I am not vouching for their accuracy, but there are several easy to use Roof Drain Sizing calculators published across the internet.  It only takes a few seconds once you have the approximate square footage of the roof you are wondering about to see just how many roof drains are needed for different areas of the country.

Do not use these for design, but like last night, when I was wondering if the architect got the design right, these sites may be a good second opinion.

So stop worrying and check out some of these Roofing Drain Sizing Calculators:

• PORTALSPLUS' Drain Calculator
• North Clad's Gutter Sizing Calculator
• JRSmith's Roof Drain Technical Data Sheet (pdf)
• Best Material's.com Drain Sizing Worksheet (pdf)
• and the International Code Council's Storm Drain Standards

Tropical Storm Season is Here, Is Your Green Roof Ready?

It is that time of year again.  Soon there may be cyclones in the Atlantic, wave after tropical wave forming off the African continent and storming westward across the Atlantic.

If your green roof has a parapet then you are lucky.  Most testing has shown parapets minimize wind damage to a green roof - though in a large hurricane, all bets are off.

Even if your green roof does not have a parapet it can still be designed to minimize tropical storm wind damage.

The video here is of a small green roof in Jacksonville, Florida on August 25th, 2008 when Tropical Storm Fay pummeled the northeast Florida area with over twenty inches of rain.  The video shows how the roof reacted to gusts up to 50 mph.  Wind speed was recorded using an ExTech anemometer.

The roof shown in the video does not have a parapet and is sloped.  The video illustrates how the irregular surface of he vegetated roof interrupts wind generated uplift that can damage asphalt shingle roofs.  The plants range in height from two inches to six inches and can be seen moving back and forth in response to the wind.

Wind racing across a flat surface can create lift - or a vacuum - and literally lift the shingles or roll roofing up off the decking below.

The plant habit acts to break the shear flow of air, creating turbulence and working against damaging uplift.  Planting more wind tolerant plants, such as some succulents or grasses may actually create wind breaks in a manner similar to the way a parapet would act.

Another important quality of a well designed green roof is the drainage factor.  The roof here is allowing a rapid drain of roughly 18" of rain over a 24 hour period without washing out. 

Monolithic hurricane mats used as the basis of the planting system allow for quick drainage of the stormwater and create a mechanism where plant roots can attached and anchor themselves to the roof all the while holding soil in place.  A well established root architecture  is important  for tropical green roofs subject to high winds and heavy downpours.

We will always deal with the 5 H's here in Florida - High Heat, High Humidity, Hard Frosts, Hurricanes and Hard Desiccating Winds, but with good green roof design your Florida Green Roof can hopefully withstand a severe storm, including tropical storms!

In the meantime, there are some precautions the green roof owner can take to prepare for tropical storm season (May 15th for the Pacific area and June 1 for the Atlantic regions).

At a minimum, we recommend;

1. No large trees on a roof.
1. Small shrubs and small trees may be used successfully depending upon the final design.  This may seem like a common-sense guideline but people try to put all types of tall, large trees on patio or garden roofs.  During a 130 mph cyclone, the tree may be blown over and may cause damage from the fall against the structure or to the street below.  It may also become airborne if the winds are strong enough.  Growing up in Hialeah I saw plenty of hurricanes come through our area and witnessed first hand the power of these storm events.
2. Anything and everything on a roof should be permanently attached.  
1. Walkways should be constructed from a permanently attached TPO, EDPM or other mat and permanently affixed to the roof.
2. No loose chairs, tables or other items should be present.  If you wish to have a chair and table stay on a roof during a cyclone, they must be permanently attached.
3. All green roof components must be permanently attached to the structure.
4. Any trays, plastics, pots, containers or other green roof components must be permanently attached to the building structure.  Florida Building Code does not allow for loose items to be installed on a roof - they must be attached.
5. Green Roof Irrigation components must be permanently attached to the roof.
3. Make sure all tools and gardening utensils are picked up and put away.
1. It is very easy to forget the pair of shears, scissors or pliers on a roof.  Remember what you were using and where you liad them.
4. Plant selection should be focused on those species that have historically survived cyclone and hurricane incidents.  There are several good books available at most bookstores here in Florida on proper cyclone resistent landscaping and many resources on the web, such as the Brevard County Landscaping Guide for Hurricane Areas.
5. Check on the NOAA National Hurricane Center website daily.  The NHC webpage is a wonderful resource, full of links to climatic data.

Always use a green roof design or green roof system already proven in actual field trials with hurricane simulation testing.  Watching a green roof blow off during a storm is an avoidable event.  Due diligence upfront and preparedness is important for green roofs in hurricane prone and cyclone impacted areas.

A Marfan Easter In The Children's Memorial Garden

Marfan Syndrome Family Easter in the Children's Memorial Garden

Easter morning was wet, cool and drizzly.  We tried the sunrise service at Flagler Beach but the sight of the bright, easter-egg colored panties under the dresses of the ladies singing church songs and shaking tambourines, being blown up over their heads by the thirty mile and hour ocean winds scooting across the stage in the park, was not what I was looking for.  Give me a hot, black cup of coffee instead.

Easter Sunrise Service, Downtown Flagler Beach

So we went and had breakfast on the pier across the street, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.  I love the big pond, a metaphor of eternity to me, much like the sky.

Flagler Beach and the Big Salty Pond

Sometimes I wonder if eternity flies by as fast as time here as we know it flies by.  Seems like I was just starting college last month, but it has been forty years.  I still haven't really figured out any of the answers.

The last year and a half has been a challenge in many ways for our family.  I wake every day to the same and new, different challenges with Marfan Syndrome problems, but bottom-line grateful I awoke.  Because I have finally realized life is so precious and tenuous I offer up a prayer of thanks and beseeching every night before I fall asleep.  If the night is to be my last I want to go out in a thankful mood.

Judy has been fighting her auto-immune inflammation and hopefully may have found some relief with an older acupuncturist here in Palm Coast.  Jincy and Ruairi forge ahead with school and social activities, and with all the competition in school I worry about their dilated aortas.  On an aside note, I do not understand why the State of Florida and Governor Rick Scott have upped the SAT and ACT score requirements form high to nearly impossible for Bright Futures Scholarships, without an exception for children also battling a disability challenge.  Jincy has over a 4.5 GPA and Ruairi a 4.7 GPA (A=4.0) because of they study so hard and do so much extra credit work.  Teens that work that hard, with grades that good all the while battling disabilities should have access to the state's lottery money supposedly dedicated to education.

Jincy and Ruairi have their own Marfan Syndrome Challenges, but they forge ahead, unstoppable-like

Jincy has a really good deal at the University of South Florida in Tampa which she has accepted, and I am grateful for her hard work.

Seems like the two teens time in high school just started yesterday, too.  And the grandchildren teens (son and daughter of Judy's second oldest daughter who recently had a serious brain aneurysm) Dylan and Dharma have been here six months in May.  Yes, time flies.

A year and a half has also passed since baby Heidi (Judy's daughter Leslie's baby girl) died.  Leslie and her husband still struggle with so much grief.  Shortly thereafter I hung a set of wind chimes on a beautiful scrub live oak in the Children's Memorial Garden overlooking the intracoastal waterway.  The memorial garden is full of wind chimes placed there by others in a child's memory.

Children's Memorial Garden Overlooking Florida's Intracoastal Waterway, Live Oak Nestled

The wind along the intracoastal is not as strong and brisk as the ocean front wind but still steady enough to keep all of the beautiful sounding wind chimes singing most of the time.  If I was a spirit child, I would go to that salty riverside place just to listen to the jingles and bells and wind softly blow.  As an old man, I also like to go there to talk to angels woven throughout the misty salt air.

But not only are there beautiful melodies sounding of a child's choir in the air, the garden is full of beautiful colors and textures, art and nature combined together in love.

Heidi's New Wind Chime is tied next to her Frog Chime in the Memorial Garden

Heidi's wind chime was showing signs of wear from the breezes and I wanted to get the four teens out of the house and into nature for their daily vitamin D dose.  I'd found a really cool dragonfly chine with just one dangle and figured it was just the chime to attach next to Heidi's original chime.

The four teens and I talked about thankfulness, remembrance, love, kindness, memories and a bunch of other esoteric topics I can't remember now, on the way to the intracoastal.  We also talked about baby Heidi and her parents and her brother.  I reached up and held the two silver hearts hanging on my medical ID necklace, hearts from my Mom.

The four teens, Dylan (Grandson 16), Marfan teens Ruairi & Ruairi (16 & almost 18) and Dharma  (Granddaughter 14)

One thing I don't want flying time to do is allow us to forget.

The teens and I enjoyed out time in the children's memorial garden.  We listened to the chimes.  They stopped and read all of the little memorial stones, pavers and bricks placed throughout the special nature walk.  They even reached up to dab a corner of their eyes when they though no one was looking.

Heidi has two wind chimes now.  Her frog wind chime is still there.  And someone else has placed a big green tree frog on an adjacent limb to look after Heidi's smaller frog chime.

New Big Florida Green Tree Watching Over Heidi's Smaller Green Frog Chime, Down By The Riverside 

And there is a beautiful red star in the next tree over.

Stars in the Scrub Live Oaks

As we left I looked down to my right.  Lovely easter eggs for the children here.

I think, despite my challenged cognitive state and memory, I think I will come back here more often.  There is much to learn from a special place full of native plants, overlooking the edge of an eternal ocean and full of children's twinkling and chiming voices, especially for an old man like me.

Easter Eggs for the Children in The Memorial Garden down by the Intracoastal Waters

Green Roof Videos

Sometimes I can't sleep at night.  My titanium aortic valve makes a racket at night and the Dacron aorta feels like an overfilled balloon bouncing around in my chest.  Times like these I want to watch #GreenRoof videos!  So I made my own collection of my favorite green roof videos and now it is easy to watch them over and over.

Here is one of my favorites:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbzOUC0UICo

I can learn from the pros, like Dusty Gedge and others.  I can also watch others and learn what not to do - like stand on a roof without rails and risk falling off to certain broken somethings or worse.

I am amazed at just how many greenroom websites include photos of obvious OSHA violations where staff are leaning over the edge of rooftops high in the air without personal fall protection equipment.  Safety First on Green Roofs!

Anyway, I hope you enjoy these videos and also do not fall off your green roof! I will be adding more and changing out other videos on a frequent basis.  Please email me links to your favorite green roof or living wall videos and I will try and include those too and give you credit for the link or video if you wish - send the links and comments here.

Beat Your Florida Green Roof Wind Impacts With Rich Coastal Biodiversity

The very best way to understand how your coastal green roof (and for that matter any green roof) will preform is to visit the site as often as possible before the plants are installed.

I always say 'wind is the biggest killer of green roof plants' and there have been many posts about wind impacts in this blog over the years, including;

• Designing a Florida Green Roof to Withstand Desiccating Winds (April 2014)
• Green Roof Dead Zones - Why Wind Breaks are Necessary (February 2011)
• Brown Green Roofs, Green Roof Forensics (July 2011)
• and so many more

Wind and light are two of the most important green roof design variables.  We at MetroVerde consider light and wind to be the two primary green roof design variables to take into consideration when developing ideas for a green roof.

The very best way to know whether or not wind is going to impact your project is to walk the site as often as possible, in the morning and throughout the day and in the evening.   Wind impacts fluctuate depending on a number of factors, including time of day.

Sunlight, air temperature and gradients and many other variables can influence air movement.

My teen daughter and I took a walk along the Atlantic coastal beach this morning and the and was blowing!  The pier's flag was standing straight out and whipping back and forth and we estimated the sped to be about 15 meter's per second - almost 35 miles per hour.

Most any plants are going to suffer in winds that fast and many broad leaf plants will quickly desiccate out and possibly die, especially as salt deposition from the ocean spray coats the leaves, stems and flowers.

Over the years we have worked on developing a green roof model that identifies those plant families with good wind resistance.

A wind resistant plant will possess either light-time activated or embedded spatial separation and protection mechanisms for Calvin Cycle processes.

Parapets are always preferred as wind breaks but architects sometimes develop client-directed roof plans with little or no parapets.  In those cases we must use wind resistant plants to serve as living parapets or wind breaks to the inner green roof.

Thank goodness there are many plants that can survive the vicious onslaught presented by salt spray and winds though.

Florida Green Roofs, coastal dunes are rich in biodiversity with wind and salt tolerant plants perfect for #GreenRoofs

Which ones?

The very best was to know whether or not wind is going to impact your green roof project and to find out what plants can survive these blistering winds is to regularly walk the project site.  

At first glance the coastal beaches may seem to just be 'green' with sand spurs. Ha!  Closer looks will show just how complex plant biodiversity on the beach dune actually is.  There are many, many species adapted to those wicked, punishing salty winds.

The very best was to know whether or not wind is going to impact your green roof project and to find out what plants can survive these blistering winds is to regularly walk the project site. 

Time to go for a walk.

How Florida Green Roofs are Born - an Idea and a Sketch

Where does one start on a green roof project?  For me it is with an idea then a rough sketch.

Florida Green Roof ideas start with a client's idea, then to a sketch. Great projects start with a simple idea.

 Many times the first sketch creates more ideas and those thoughts open more doors to expanded imagination.

Sometimes the idea may be shelved, but I suspect never forgotten.  Once an idea is created the concept has been released to the universe and could be around for a very long time.

Fabulous art deco building in the planning process for rehabilitation.

This building will be a health food, yoga and coffee shop in the near future.  The owner desires to incorporate vertical green.  We start with an idea and a sketch.

Some of the first issues we discuss include:

• Structural capabilities (the roof is reinforced concrete)
• City permitting requirements for landscape and stormwater
• Wind exposure
• Sun intensity
• Budget
• Maintenance
• Theme
• Adjoining buildings, and
• so much more

But all journeys start with an idea.  Like a seed, the first thought grows and begins to take root.  Soon new forms appear.  Over time the creation matures, one step at a time, beginning with an idea.

My advice to all green roof and living wall designers is, "dream and let ideas flow".

Plant Size Considerations for Green Roofs - Size and Weight Are Important!

Sometimes we may be inclined to add small succulents to a green roof planting scheme because we know they may be tolerant to just about every environmental factor encountered on a roof.

Agave are drought, salt, wind, heat and hurricane tolerant, but they will add weight to a green roof!

Succulents can be deceiving with respect to size and weight, especially to those who have not worked long term with these plants and seen their size at maturity.  What may be a tiny, perfectly sized immature succulent may turn into a very large and heavy specimen with age.

Potential Florida Green Roof plant or potential roof problem?

Root architecture too is another important consideration for the green roof designer to take into account.

Some succulent plants develop swollen root tubers for water and nutrient storage.  Additional water means heavier weight.  Moreover, some of these roots grow in a very aggressive fashion and can damage an underlying single ply membrane or asphalt shingle roof.

Potential green roof plants have also have aggressive root systems that can damage single ply or shingles

While some small succulents, like sedum may never grow six feet tall, others can.  Though the succulents and cacti you plant may do wonderfully for the first several years,  over time they may outgrow the roof's planting bed.

Problems arise when these overgrown plants present weight issues with respect to the loading capabilities of a supporting roof structure.  An extensive green roof with smaller plants may weight twenty to thirty pounds per square foot or 100 - 150 kg/sm.  The same extensive green roof with 5' to 6' agaves may weigh three or four times the original weight.

Wind resistant can be another important factor with large plants on a rooftop, especially in hurricane impacted areas.

When you increase a roof's live load fourfold you may cause structural failure issues.

Treat some succulents as potential large shrubs or small trees.  Remember, just because a small succulent looks just right for your green roof doesn't mean it will stay that way.

Green Roofs Can Cool Cities, Learning From an Endurocap

Green roofs really do cool buildings through plant transpiration and I proved this yesterday to myself by example with an inexpensive but highly effective cap called the Mission Enduracool cap.

My Mission Enduracool cap teaches me about green roof cooling effects.

Green roofs and Mission Endurocool cool based upon the same principal as air conditioners  - that of heat being absorbed into a liquid and the liquid transitioning from a liquid state to a gaseous state.

On green roofs and across my cooling cap the liquid is water.  Plants transpire water out of their stomata during the photosynthesis processes and I sweat water and salts.  Air conditioners usually evaporate a refrigerant like freon, but all there cooling processes are based around heat being absorbed into a liquid and the resulting gaseous phase that takes place with heat adsorption.

According to the US Geological Service (USGS) about ten percent of the humidity in the air is due to plant's transpiration.  That is a lot of water!

So because I cycle most everywhere I go, my head (just like a building's rooftop) gets hot from both metabolism and from solar gain.  I always wear a helmet but that piece of safety equipment does not do much to cool except provide a bit of filtered shade.

We have talked of green roofs and their insulation value before, several times in this blog, but cooling offers additional benefits over insulation.  Cooling actually removes heat whereas insulation just blocks heat.

My first bicycle trip out with the cooling cap was to Publix, our local grocery store.  Per the cap's instruction sheet, I soaked it  in water and proceeded to wring most of the water out, leaving the cloth slightly damp.  Snapping it over my bald head I took off down the road after turning my bike's safety lights on.  The cooling effect was immediately noticeable and amazing!

Green roof plants and their transpiration right away popped into my mind.  "Hey!  This is what is happening to a building with a green roof as plants loose water to the atmosphere through evaporation", I told myself.

There are many web resources pointing out the benefits of green roofs, and their cooling potential for the urban core.

For me the maxim, 'seeing is believing' rings so true.  I learn mostly from experience.  The cooling cap taught me yesterday about the power of plants on a roof and cooling the cities.

Riding my bike I felt as if I had an air conditioner in my cycle helmet.

Sometimes short, simple life experiences can teach us more than an entire college course.  Green roofs can cool cities, I knew this before but I am so much more convinced now.

Green Roof Soil Media Questions for an Ocean Front Green Roof

I have been asking myself a question over and over again lately.  How do I keep green roof soil media from blowing off a three story, ocean front residential green roof?

The Atlantic Ocean shore - great place to learn of #Greenroof plants and to build a green roof too!

I think I have the answer but I still am asking myself the question over and over.  Not because I have doubts necessarily, but because I want to examine the issue on a regular basis, over an extended period of time.

In the past I've had new insights arise when I regularly revisit a challenge.  Challenges, be they green roof related or otherwise, are usually solved if one puts enough thought into resolving the issue at hand.

This particular green roof project will be a challenge.  Weight will be a factor as it always is.  Light will be intense and strong, all day long with no shade available.  Salt spray will be constantly coating the plants.  Hurricanes are very likely as the house sits right in the middle of hurricane alley.

But I am as confident as any experienced green roof designer can be that all these variables will  be addressed in a manner that will minimize risk to the structure, plants and surrounding area.

The daily wind factor keeps coming back into my mind though.

Any green roof will have the potential to experience much higher wind loadings.  A green roof on the ocean front usually has much higher velocity daily winds whipping across the soil and plants.  Keeping the plants alive and free from desiccation is one issue and keeping the soil media from sand-blasting a neighbor's house is another design goal (as well as simply keeping the soil media on the roof).

Ocean lots are a challenge to the #GreenRoof designer for many reasons

Sand has it's advantages and disadvantages.  Coastal dune plants, those species that will survive on a roof such as this love beach sand.  But sand has a tendency to be blown around easily and is quite heavy.  The sand here is primarily a lovely brown hue and composed mainly of crushed coquina shell, full of calcium and other trace minerals.  It drains well and holds an adequate amount of moisture.

But I am not thinking sharp beach sand would be good on the roof.  With average daily wind velocities from 5-6 meters per second up to 10 MPS and higher, I am concerned beach sand would be blown away in a matter of days, if not hours.

Walking the beach not only relaxes but teaches much.  I see things on my frequent seashore strolls that remind me of how Mother Nature behaves.  She behaves as she wants too, with little to no regard for us humans and our designs.

Mother Nature and wind has a mind of their own with regards to sand deposition #greenroofs

I view seawalls constructed with many thousands of dollars intended to hold sand in one place or keep sand out of another place and despite our best efforts these structures ultimately always loose the battle. Mother Nature puts sand where her wind blows and in other places too.

Perhaps a larger diameter, lightweight inorganic substance like expanded clay may be better.  We will analyze this in future posts.  A mature, developed green roof plant root system will go a long ways towards holding soil media in place, but can take a couple years or more to for the roots to develop and I don't want the clay to come off the roof and act like shotgun pellets in a tropical storm, damaging adjacent fenestration as ICC notes warn against.

Ultimately, root architecture may be the answer.  Comprehensive root coverage can hold soil media, plants and the green roof system in place even under storm conditions.

Agar-based tackifiers and netting have been used to prevent wind scouring of green roof soil media.  On the ocean front site I am concerned the tackifier would quickly degrade under the intense solar heat and constant salty mist.  Last thing I want to see too, is wind netting loosely flopping about after becoming slightly dislodged, perhaps beating the plants down in the breezes.

Sustainability too and green building programs call for use of local materials and are other considerations to take into account.  Sometimes local material compounding is practical or even the only way to acquire soil media.  Other times local materials may not be suitable for green roof soil applications.

Ocean front #Greenroofs face salt, wind, sun, storms and other harsh impacts

We don't want the soil media to be too dark because of high solar gain.  I spoke with someone yesterday who told me about a free roof that would not grow plants because the expanded shale was so hot he could feel the intense heat through his shoes.

We want the soil media to have a proper, plant friendly pH to encourage good plant growth too, and it needs to be primarily an inorganic mix also.

There are also many standards and reference materials to consult.

European FLL have been the most looked to standards for specification and design.

There is a simple but good short description of the green roof soil media question published by Design Cost Data here.

One of the most comprehensive and helpful discussions of green roof soil media is located on the industry website, Greenroofs.com .  The article discusses green roof soil media ASTM standards and provides links to other valuable soil media references, especially to an article by Chuck Friedrich entitled 'Don't Call it Dirt!'.

I've got a lot to consider concerning this ocean front structure's windy green roof.

Green Roof and Living Wall Soil Media - Vertical Green Begins Below Ground

Vines provide great vertical screening and greening capabilities, especially here in Florida where strong desiccating winds can quickly overwhelm and dessicate a planted exterior living wall,

Coral honeysuckle, Lonicera sempervirens offers interesting color and texture as a living wall

 (unless one uses a non-native invasive species like Boston Fern, Nephrolepis cordifolia, which is never recommended).

One of the most important aspects of creating a beautiful, thick and lush living wall is sometimes never even considered, that being the quality and characteristics of the soil in which the vines are planted.

Unfortunately, many designers only consider the flowers or foliage, forgetting the roots though not seen, are so critical to leaf and flower development.

Native Carolina jessamine, Gelsemium sempervirens should be nice and thick but is planted in bad soil

In urban development projects the soil can be concrete rubble with a high pH.  In situations like these a beautiful stainless and expensive trellis and nice, hot house grown plants can end up looking terrible in a matter or weeks.

Coral honeysuckle planted in poor soils looks terrible

I've written about the Jacksonville Whole Foods living wall trellis system before - an expensive living wall system that looks pitiful, all due to high pH and other soil problems.  Soil pH is a measure of acidity or alkalinity in the dirt.

Living wall vines can become woody without proper soil, loosing their leaves

The health food grocer has a high-quality stainless trellis system installed near the front entrance and on the south side of the store building.  Yet the plants have not successfully established themselves and grown well.  The store has been open now for several years, allowing plenty of time for the plants to send down roots and add  upper biomass.

The present store facility was originally constructed where another building had been demolished.  It appears some of the original slab was reused, and significant amounts of concrete, crushed block and other previous building material was integrated into the soil during site preparation.

Most plants prefer a soil pH of between 5.6 up to 7.0.  Many native and adapted Florida Friendly plants vines require an even lower pH to thrive.

Soils with a high pH, such as the urban soils in the Whole Foods living wall planters, restrict nutrient availability (specifically iron, zinc and manganese), stunting planted vine growth and causing yellowing of leaves.

Although some soil amendments appear to have been added during final landscaping, the type and quantity were not adequate to encourage strong plant growth.

There are several simple remedies available to the Whole Foods site.  The living wall was installed in 2010-2011 and could have easily be supporting massive amounts of flowering, fruiting and beautiful vines by mid summer 2012.  Today it is 2014 and the vines still struggle to maintain a tiny about of leaf cover.

But a remedy is possible.  First there needs to be a minor excavation of existing planter soil, both around the front columns and then within the southern wall planter box.  This soil does not need to be discarded.

Second, an appropriate amount of ammonium based fertilizer should be mixed into the soil.  Ammonium based fertilizers typically contain ammonium sulfate or sulfur coated urea.  Ammonium and oxygen react to form nitrite/nitrate, water and hydrogen ions.  The hydrogen ions then work to acidify the soil.

One advantage urban soils usually have is the variety of soil particle sizes and if not over-compacted, can provide for adequate oxygenation of the soil.  Oxygen and ammonium provide nutrients for the plants and help counteract the higher pH of the urban soils.

A quick field test of the Whole Foods planter soils reveals significantly higher than normal  pH.

Amending with organic matter is another possible approach.  Composted pine bark, pine needles, oak leaves, properly composted food scraps can also release both needed nutrients and hydrogen ions into the soil.  Another benefit of the organic mulch route is that earth worms and other soil life will quickly create extensive micro-communities, contributing additional nutrients and providing for nature based soil aeration.

Once the Whole Foods planter soils are amended with the proper amount of ammonium based fertilizers, the soil can be replaced and plants installed.

Of course, care should be taken not to over-fertilize.  Excess amounts of ammonium based fertilizers can burn the roots of installed plants, creating a whole new set of problems.

Native and landscape vines alike can add vertical interest, privacy, screening, color and texture to a landscape project under almost any atmospheric conditions if they are growing in adequate soils.

Remembering that vertical green begins far below the ground is the first step to living wall design and construction success.