Top 5 Maintenance Tips for a Thriving Green Roof
Green roofs have become increasingly popular, especially in urban environments, for their numerous benefits, including increasing biodiversity, improving air quality and for their structural benefits. The GrufeKit is designed as a low-maintenance green roof solution, using hardy evergreen sedum varieties to ensure coverage all year round.
No immediate aftercare is required at the time of installation. Each GrufeTile comes to site fully established with pre-grown vegetation eliminating the need of any irrigation. But to ensure your GrufeKit green roof continues to thrive and provide these advantages, some maintenance is required.
Here are our top five tips for GrufeKit green roof maintenance.
1. Carry out maintenance work in early Autumn
To ensure your roof stays in good condition we recommend carrying out maintenance work in early Autumn. This is to prepare your green roof for the winter and to address any stress it would have had from the summer months, including heatwaves, drought, and intense sunlight. By addressing this in autumn, it allows you to resolve any issues that may have arisen before the colder months arrive.
2. Hand weed and remove unwanted seedlings
Weeding is a fundamental aspect of green roof maintenance. We recommend carrying out your maintenance work in Autumn, as seen in point 1, as this is when the wildflowers, from our Sedum & Wildflower GrufeTile, will begin to die off, therefore making this a perfect time to strim them.
Unwanted weeds and seedlings can compete with your chosen vegetation, such as your sedum, depriving them of nutrients and space. Regularly inspect your green roof and remove any of these invasive plants by hand to ensure that your preferred plant species can thrive without competition.
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3. Feed the roof with organic phosphate and potassium
We recommend feeding your green roof with phosphate and potassium to keep it thriving throughout the autumn and winter months. The phosphate will help the formation of new roots and the potassium helps plants build strong stems and promotes fast growth.
4. Clear gutters or drainage outlets of vegetation
Effective drainage is crucial for green roofs. Over time, vegetation or debris can build up in gutters or drainage outlets, obstructing the flow of water. To prevent waterlogging and potential damage, it is important to clear these areas regularly.
5. Sedum will go red when stressed through dry or cold weather when it is low on organic nutrients. Here is what to do if that happens:
If your GrufeKit green roof has gone red, compared to its usual luscious green, it does not mean it is dead! There are a couple of things you can do to help it regain the green. You can either wait for the rain to come or if the rain isn’t forecast for a while you might want to irrigate the roof once a week for approximately 1 hour. If you feel the need to do more than this, we recommend feeding the plants with fish, blood, and bone, which can be found in most garden supply stores.
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If you have any questions about the maintenance of your GrufeKit green roof, then please contact us or check out our FAQs.
