A rooftop garden is an easy way to have the garden experience without needing the land to create the garden. A rooftop garden is when you build a garden on the roof of a building which is usually done in urban areas. Gardening in general has a lot of benefits for the environment and surrounding community and rooftop gardening is no exception. There are a lot of benefits to rooftop gardening and some rooftop gardens are very beneficial to the urban population and community.
Rooftop gardening provides a local temperature control for the community since steel and glass along with concrete make up a lot of urban structure. The steel, glass and concrete traps a lot of heat which is why most city areas are higher in temperature than the outlying communities. If you have a lot of garden roofs in the inner-city then you can help control the temperature through the plants cooling down the area. The plant will absorb the heat given off by the building materials and then release cold air into the atmosphere. This process can help reduce the temperature in the city and even a few degrees cooler can make a huge impact.
Rooftop gardens also help to control the temperature of the building they are built on which is great for the people inside the building. The rooftop is usually the area that absorbs the most heat through the day and it gets released into the buildings which can increase room temperature. If you have a rooftop garden then you can have the soil or other material absorbing the heat and replacing it with cooler air. The rooftop will not be as hot as it was once you have the rooftop garden in place and it might even cool the inside of the building by a few degrees.
Rooftop gardens are also beneficial to the insects and other animals seen in that local environment. In city areas you do not often see a lot of birds or butterflies hanging out because of the hot conditions and often polluted areas. If you have a rooftop garden then it is welcoming these insects back to the area and giving them a place for food and shelter. The insects will come back into the region which is great if they are close to extinction in the area and then they will breed. These small insects that are attracted to flowers and various plants are a vital part of the eco-system and need to be kept intact. The food and shelter that a rooftop garden provides for the insects will keep them coming back and making a home in the city.
Rooftop gardens, especially in the city can help reduce carbon dioxide levels which will increase air quality. A lot of major city areas have a problem with pollution due to the large number of industrial buildings and manufacturing plants. If you have a rooftop garden near these locations then you can reduce the amount of carbon dioxide given off and being polluted into the atmosphere. The plants produce oxygen and removes carbon dioxide which will help clean the air in the city and provide a safer environment. Air quality is also important in the summer when it is humid and very hot so it is important we have as much oxygen in the area as possible.
The value of property near the location of the rooftop garden will also increase which can help business and the community as a whole. Although the equipment and tools are expensive for the rooftop gardens, there are a lot of tax incentives for a business to do it. We are seeing more people going eco-friendly these days and more tax incentives and other grants are becoming available for this to happen. With the tax incentives and grants given out, a lot of buildings are going to move toward the rooftop gardening. The property values of homes will increase because people are willing to pay more for eco-friendly buildings and neighborhoods. The increase in property value will also make the community more productive and it will increase their overall cash flow also. It is good for all business within the community and will make more people want to live there.
Rooftop gardening will also help children who live in the city learn how to plant and grow their own food. In the city it is very hard to teach a child about gardening and growing plants because there is simply no where to do it. If you have a rooftop garden where you live, this is the perfect opportunity to get your child involved in gardening and growing their own food. It will teach your child about what it takes to survive and will show them responsibility since caring for the plants will make them grow. Children are often too busy these days with video games and their computer to get outside and enjoy nature and the various plants around them. Rooftop gardening is an educational tool you could use to teach your child about nature and plants even if you live in the city.
