Wealth Mag Issue22

Page 55

Clearly, the type of roof limits whether you can grow a garden, but if you have a flat concrete roof, it is most likely eligible to handle a garden. You still need to have an expert check it out, especially for cracks and leaks.

How do you set up a roof garden?

Don’t just throw soil on your roof and start planting. The roots from the plants will eventually eat away at your roof and ruin it, not to mention the damage water will do to it. Garden beds or containers need to be built whether out of plastic or wood, lined with water-resistant material to prevent leaking and then placed on the roof. The soil is then placed inside the beds or containers and planting can begin just as you would a regular garden. I would also highly recommend you have good drainage installed if you don’t already do. The beauty of doing it like this is that you have mobility and customisation. If you no longer want the roof to have a garden or a hurricane is coming and you are concerned about the effect it will have on the roof, you can easily move the beds off the roof. You can also consider stacking platforms to get vertical space, rearrange the beds to change the layout, or build a greenhouse to minimise the sunlight. The possibilities really depend on how far you want to take it. There is an added benefit to having a roof garden; the plants will keep the roof cooler and will potentially lower your AC bill, so you will be going double green in one go.

be worth all of that trouble. If you have a patio or balcony, you have some options. Depending on if your patio is grilled gives you a little bit more creative space to work with. The containers you are going to grow in depend on what you want to grow. For apartments, growing smaller items like escallion, thyme, Scotch bonnet pepper, tomatoes, lettuce are recommended as the container footprint will be small enough to maximise the little space you have. If the apartment is grilled, you can consider hanging containers to give you multiple layers of plants. This can also keep your patio space free, keep the patio cool and aid in privacy.

Gardening requires lots of water - most of it in the form of perspiration

-Lou Erickson

Go forth and grow.

Overall, you will have to consider how you are going to water your plants, whether you are going to go with automatic watering systems, have a water storage unit accessible from the roof or manually carry water in a container to water each plant. Also, ensure that what you are doing meets building codes and doesn’t violate your rental agreement. At the end of the day, grow what you can. With the grocery bill increasing with the sliding dollar, saving a little here and there will go a long way. Not to mention, there is nothing that tastes as good as freshly picked escallion or thyme to season your food.

How do you setup a garden in an apartment?

If you live in an apartment and don’t have access to a roof, then setting up a garden will prove tricky. Apartment gardening takes a lot more finesse as apartments are getting smaller and smaller these days. The truth is you will need a patio, balcony, or a section of your apartment that extends outside into sunlight. Now, I’m not saying you can’t grow a few herbs inside, but ensuring the plant has sufficient sunlight will require a lot of attention or you will have to buy an ultraviolet light. How much you can grow might not even

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