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Garden Experiments

shading a roof

14 years ago

so here's an idea

i have a small house with asphalt shingles and a ridge roof. what i want to do is built planters that i can set on the ridge, tie them into the roof and run a drip system up there to take care of the watering and fertilizing.

im thinking dune sunflower or passion vine since both do extremely well in here. have them grow from the planters and come down on the roof pretty much giving me shade and savings all day long. cut them back when the cold season starts and collect some of the winter heat.

so here a some things i'm wondering about. even if these plants wont grow roots inbetween the shingles can the wind make them wear the roof out?

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Comment (1)

toxcrusadr
14 years ago
If they are heavy enough to put a little weight on it, but at the same time able to blow around in the wind, then yes, they are going to put some wear and tear on the shingles. It may not be noticeable right away. Even when you just walk over the roof, those little pieces of gravel are dislodged.

However, green roofs are a great idea and worth pursuing. You might consider some kind of wire trellis or net that can hold the plants up off the shingles. If it's not too heavy duty it could stay there all year and the sun would still hit the roof in winter after the plants are pulled off.
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