How Can Green Roofs Survive The Winter Months?

Green roofs are designed to be extremely durable but the winter months can be a severe test. The great team at Living Architect Monitor took a closer look at this in their recent article titled ‘Helping green roofs survive the winter months’.

Across North America, there are a litany of examples showing how climate change is disturbing weather patterns. Our understanding of the traditional changing of the seasons is shifting. We’ve seen heat domes, raging wildfires, intense flooding and rainfall, harsh drought, explosive tornadoes and other extreme weather events increase in frequency and duration over the last few years, as the planetary climate overall warms. Unfortunately, that comes with an increase in the public cost burden to fix damaged infrastructure and stresses flora and fauna.

Winter is the traditional dormant season for plants and it is also seeing changes: winter is becoming more unpredictable. As the planet heats up, people and plants are having to adapt in unexpected ways. One way is to adapt the design and maintenance of green roofs and the plants that inhabit them.

Calgary, Alberta, on the western edge of the Prairies, close to the Rocky Mountains, is a Canadian city well known for its cold winters. Kerry Ross is an architect and award-winning green roof designer there. Over the past 20 years or so, she has seen some substantial changes in her practice especially for green roofs in the winter.

Calgary, like other locations, is seeing an increase in extreme weather events including hotter, drier summers and wetter winters. More precipitation is falling in the winter and spring which makes choosing appropriate plants for green roofs a particular challenge, as summers are drier than normal. In response, the Calgary region has officially been moved from a Zone 3 to a Zone 4 hardiness zone for plants within the last 20 years.  This makes plant selection more challenging, but it also improves survivability.  

To view the full article, please visit – https://livingarchitecturemonitor.com/articles/helping-green-roofs-survive-winter-months-w21