8 Benefits of a Rooftop Garden

Image by ArtTower from Pixabay

​People around the world recognize the benefits of rooftop gardening. The fact that there's only so much land left for people to own, while a rooftop garden also helps improve the air quality of inner cities.

Countries like France, Canada, and Switzerland have laws requiring new residential buildings have at least one green rooftop. The success of a rooftop garden lies in its incredible benefits.

Here are some of the key benefits of a rooftop garden.

 Improves Air Quality
One of the reasons that rooftop gardens are famous in modern cities are their efficiency in cleaning the air. Vehicles create several harmful pollutants and a small garden on rooftops or balconies contributes to filtering polluted particles.

Efficient disposal of biodegradable waste
People consume fruits and vegetables daily. It creates bio-waste as not all the parts of a vegetable are consumable. You can always buy fertilizers and compost for soil fertility. How about using the biodegradable waste from your kitchen? It’s a lot better way than dumping it into the dustbin.

The rooftop garden serves as an excellent way to reduce the amount of bio-waste. You need to dig around the top layer of the soil to dump all the waste products. Spread it evenly under the top layer around the plant to ensure that it gradually releases the essential nutrients in the soil.

In summer seasons, a rooftop garden requires a lot of water due to sun exposure. As you might have limited access to the water in summer, you can use bio-waste to keep the soil moist and help the loss of water as well.
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Regulates temperature
When the roof surface exposed to direct sunlight is covered with a lush green garden, it creates heat insulation. According to a study, rooftop gardening helps to regulate the temperature of your house. As we tend to use an air conditioner in summer and spring, it also means less expense on your electricity bills.
  
Moreover, the application of the rooftop is not limited to summers only. It helps against the loss of heat in winters as well.

Rainwater Conservation

Image by Frank Nürnberger from Pixabay

Every year, millions of gallons of rainwater go down the drain and into the ocean. Yet, for our daily water requirements, we still depend on municipal water supply. If only we could store the rainwater in the first place, we might be able to use the supply water where it's necessary.

We can save catch up to 60-80% of rainwater by creating a rooftop garden. You could even store the excess water for later use.

Increases Property values

It's no wonder why a rooftop garden increases the overall value of a house. Lack of enough land space is one of the biggest problems of urban areas in the 21st century. Rooftop gardens have revolutionized gardening, with more people demanding the luxury of greenery in their premises.

Today, a rooftop garden substantially increases the selling price of any house. In many major cities, the addition of a rooftop garden adds as much as 15-20% more value to its property value.

Roof top and balcony gardens make for an attractive place to relax and enjoy the outdoors in the middle of bustling cities.

Grow your own food
Rooftops and balconies can also be used to grow herbs, vegetables and fruit to supplement your groceries. Not only can you enjoy your own fresh produce, but you can save on your grocery bills, while reducing your carbon footprint. 

Regulates Urban Heat Island Effect 

Image by Interculture01 from Pixabay

UHI (Urban Heat and Island) effect is a term that is used to describe the increased temperature levels in an urban area. The urban areas are made up of concrete jungle. Due to the heat exposure, the concrete gets hotter, making the inside of the concrete unlivable for the people. In such a case, we end up increasing the AC and other cooling devices for comfort.

UHI can be controlled with the help of rooftop gardening. The evaporation cycle of plants helps cool down the city. As plants are covering most of the rooftop it lowers the UHI effect.

Prevents noise pollution
The insulation provided by the rooftop gardening is not limited to temperature fluctuations. A thick layer of soil combined with plants absorbs, reflects, deflect noise pollution from vehicles and other sources in a city.

If your house is near an airport or lies underneath flight paths, you might want to try rooftop gardening at your home.

Conclusion
Whether its water conservation, preventing noise pollution, or savings on electricity bills, rooftop gardening has a wide range of benefits. Moreover, it's a pure joy to see greenery around your house. It sends all the positive vibes to start your day, and there's nothing better than sipping a cup of coffee in the mornings around the greenery. 

Author Bio: Emily Bartels is a content writer at The Irrigation Shop. She enjoys writing on various topics mainly associated with Home Improvement, Gardening, Technology and Gadgets. Her famous articles are on the topic of Home Improvement , Technology and many more.

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