A Sauna and a Native Meadow Garden Elevate a Minnesota Rooftop
A prairie-style garden and a second-story sauna turn a plain garage roof into a beautiful landscape
Marianne Lipanovich
July 14, 2019
Houzz Contributor. I'm a California-based writer and editor. While most of my projects are garden-based, you might also find me writing about home projects and classical music. Away from the computer, I'm found in the garden (naturally), on my bike, or ice-skating outdoors (yes, that is possible in California). I'm also willing to taste-test anything that's chocolate.
Houzz Contributor. I'm a California-based writer and editor. While most of my projects... More
Replacing their deteriorating garage gave two homeowners living in the Nokomis neighborhood of Minneapolis a chance to add one of their wish-list items: a rooftop sauna overlooking the neighborhood. “That was nonnegotiable. They wanted the view,” says architect Jody McGuire of SALA Architects, who designed and built the new garage and rooftop sauna. The couple then had grasses and wildflowers native to the landscape of their Minnesota home added around the sauna and the walk leading to it.
Photos by Corey Gaffer Photography
Rooftop at a Glance
Who uses it: An active couple
Location: The Nokomis neighborhood of Minneapolis
Size: 1,096-square-foot (102-square-meter) roof, including a 115-square-foot (11-square-meter) sauna
Designers: SALA Architects (architecture), Omni Ecosystems/Rooftop Green Works (rooftop garden design)
The view from the new doorway added to the end of a second-floor hall in the house is of the wide cedar deck that connects the house to the new garage. Steps lead up to the garage’s rooftop garden and boardwalk-style cedar walkway, which ends at the new sauna in the distance.
The deck is also home to a cheerfully decorated beehive (seen here on the left), as beekeeping is one of the couple’s hobbies. Before installing the hive, the homeowners got all neighbors within 200 feet of their property to sign off on the idea. “The neighbors are gardeners, and they’re excited about the increased yields in the gardens, thanks to the bump in our local pollinator population,” McGuire says.
Find an architect on Houzz
Rooftop at a Glance
Who uses it: An active couple
Location: The Nokomis neighborhood of Minneapolis
Size: 1,096-square-foot (102-square-meter) roof, including a 115-square-foot (11-square-meter) sauna
Designers: SALA Architects (architecture), Omni Ecosystems/Rooftop Green Works (rooftop garden design)
The view from the new doorway added to the end of a second-floor hall in the house is of the wide cedar deck that connects the house to the new garage. Steps lead up to the garage’s rooftop garden and boardwalk-style cedar walkway, which ends at the new sauna in the distance.
The deck is also home to a cheerfully decorated beehive (seen here on the left), as beekeeping is one of the couple’s hobbies. Before installing the hive, the homeowners got all neighbors within 200 feet of their property to sign off on the idea. “The neighbors are gardeners, and they’re excited about the increased yields in the gardens, thanks to the bump in our local pollinator population,” McGuire says.
Find an architect on Houzz
McGuire located the new three-car garage on the site of the original garage, shown here on the right. She made it large enough to hold bikes and other recreational equipment. She even added a space dedicated to brewing beer, one of the owners’ many hobbies.
McGuire designed the flat roof with the future sauna and garden in mind. “A well-engineered flat roof can leave the options open as to how you might occupy the space in the future,” she says, adding that the design also accounts for the weight of the region’s annual snowfall. Using the same paint colors for the house and garage helped tie the classic look of the home to the more modern style of the garage. The cedar cladding on the breezeway provides a contrasting focal point.
McGuire designed the flat roof with the future sauna and garden in mind. “A well-engineered flat roof can leave the options open as to how you might occupy the space in the future,” she says, adding that the design also accounts for the weight of the region’s annual snowfall. Using the same paint colors for the house and garage helped tie the classic look of the home to the more modern style of the garage. The cedar cladding on the breezeway provides a contrasting focal point.
The sides of the garage extend a foot above the roof to create a parapet around the entire rooftop. An unobtrusive 2-foot, 6-inch cable rail provides an additional barrier.
Modern Cedar Sauna
In addition to being used on the roof deck, cedar wood covers the inside of the rooftop sauna. “Everything was cedar from the start,” McGuire says.
In addition to being used on the roof deck, cedar wood covers the inside of the rooftop sauna. “Everything was cedar from the start,” McGuire says.
The view from inside the sauna overlooks the roof garden and the trees surrounding the garage.
Shop for a sauna on Houzz
Shop for a sauna on Houzz
The couple uses the sauna year-round. “In the winter, the garden serves as a cooling space between rounds in the sauna,” McGuire says. The plants also add structural interest in winter.
Rooftop Meadow Garden
The homeowners also wanted a garden surrounding the sauna, for which McGuire turned to Omni Ecosystems, a green-roof designer, installer and manufacturer. “They are a recognized leader in this field,” she says. “They think of green roofs not just as gardens but as sustainable infrastructure with large impact.”
Nick Petty, who served as Omni’s project manager for this space, was happy to take on the project and loves the results. “It’s a gem,” he says. “It’s the smallness that sticks with people. It’s all about the details.” His favorite detail, he adds, is the way the decking “floats” so that the sauna appears to be on an island of sorts. The walkway also helps protect the garden from being stressed or even destroyed.
Work with a green-roof specialist in your area
The homeowners also wanted a garden surrounding the sauna, for which McGuire turned to Omni Ecosystems, a green-roof designer, installer and manufacturer. “They are a recognized leader in this field,” she says. “They think of green roofs not just as gardens but as sustainable infrastructure with large impact.”
Nick Petty, who served as Omni’s project manager for this space, was happy to take on the project and loves the results. “It’s a gem,” he says. “It’s the smallness that sticks with people. It’s all about the details.” His favorite detail, he adds, is the way the decking “floats” so that the sauna appears to be on an island of sorts. The walkway also helps protect the garden from being stressed or even destroyed.
Work with a green-roof specialist in your area
Petty says the owners came to Omni with a clear vision for their garden: “They wanted to tap into regional and native plants and wanted to feel a connection with where they lived.”
The plants used are a mix of those on the homeowners’ wish list and other native plantings that would thrive in the rooftop space. These include ornamental grasses such as blue joint grass (Calamagrostis canadensis), Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans), Muskingum sedge (Carex muskingumensis) and switchgrass (Panicum virgatum).
Other plantings include orange coneflower (Rudbeckia fulgida), butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa), longbract wild indigo (Baptisia bracteata), whorled milkweed (Asclepias verticillata), red columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), smooth oxeye (Heliopsis helianthoides), whorled mountain mint (Pycnanthemum verticillatum), nodding wild onion (Allium cernuum) and Short’s aster (Symphyotrichum shortii). “These plants are extraordinarily hardy,” Petty says. “They have to be, given the extremes of the region.”
He adds that these plants also have a lot more winter interest and structure than other, more herbaceous plant choices. “This is important in a region in which winter makes up around half the year, or so it seems,” he says.
Learn how to grow plants native to your region
The plants used are a mix of those on the homeowners’ wish list and other native plantings that would thrive in the rooftop space. These include ornamental grasses such as blue joint grass (Calamagrostis canadensis), Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans), Muskingum sedge (Carex muskingumensis) and switchgrass (Panicum virgatum).
Other plantings include orange coneflower (Rudbeckia fulgida), butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa), longbract wild indigo (Baptisia bracteata), whorled milkweed (Asclepias verticillata), red columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), smooth oxeye (Heliopsis helianthoides), whorled mountain mint (Pycnanthemum verticillatum), nodding wild onion (Allium cernuum) and Short’s aster (Symphyotrichum shortii). “These plants are extraordinarily hardy,” Petty says. “They have to be, given the extremes of the region.”
He adds that these plants also have a lot more winter interest and structure than other, more herbaceous plant choices. “This is important in a region in which winter makes up around half the year, or so it seems,” he says.
Learn how to grow plants native to your region
The team at Omni installed a half-inch-deep custom drainage system, topped with 6 inches of a lightweight and well-draining soil mix. They used plugs for the primary plantings as a head start, then seeded with a native custom meadow mix to provide a wild fill. Several months in, the garden looks like it has been there for years.
A microirrigation system got the plants off to a good start and provides a backup system when the weather doesn’t cooperate. “It’s the insurance,” Petty says.
More on Houzz
6 Green-Roof Myths, Busted
See 3 Gardens Beautifully Transformed by Native Plants
Find a home professional near you
Shop for home products
A microirrigation system got the plants off to a good start and provides a backup system when the weather doesn’t cooperate. “It’s the insurance,” Petty says.
More on Houzz
6 Green-Roof Myths, Busted
See 3 Gardens Beautifully Transformed by Native Plants
Find a home professional near you
Shop for home products
What are you working on?
Related Products
Related Stories
Landscape Design
9 Peaceful Garden Scenes to Bring a Moment of Serenity
Lose yourself in these beautiful gardens and see if any inspire design ideas for your outdoor space
Full Story
Landscape Design
Tour 6 Gorgeous Gardens Showcased at Palm Springs Modernism Week
Designers celebrate desert plants, sculptural stone and indoor-outdoor living at the recent midcentury design festival
Full Story
Events
8 Small-Yard Design Ideas From the 2021 Chelsea Flower Show
Try some of these design ideas to create a leafy sanctuary in even the smallest of outdoor spaces
Full Story
Landscape Design
Yard of the Week: Lake House Landscape Composed Like a Symphony
By Becky Harris
A beautiful design solves drainage and erosion problems on a North Carolina lakefront property
Full Story
Landscape Design
Yard of the Week: Lakefront Retreat for Relaxing and Entertaining
A family’s renovated weekend property features expansive meadow gardens, a rustic fire pit area and a labyrinth
Full Story
Landscape Design
A Contemporary Landscape With Lush, Layered Plantings
By Becky Harris
Biodiversity, seasonal interest, an enticing path and outdoor living areas are a few highlights of this Toronto yard
Full Story
Landscape Design
Yard of the Week: Whimsical Walled Garden for Play and Discovery
A landscape designer found on Houzz turns a backyard ruin into a secret garden for a family with a young daughter
Full Story
Landscape Design
Tour a Designer’s Gardens in the North Carolina Mountains
By Becky Harris
The nature-inspired landscape surrounds a new dogtrot home with a meadow, a steep hillside, bogs and a natural stream
Full Story
Landscape Design
Yard of the Week: Lush Aquatic Garden Welcomes Wildlife
The peaceful London landscape, with two ponds and a trickling waterfall, is a sanctuary for garden visitors of all types
Full Story
Landscape Design
A Magical Australian Garden With Room to Explore
Step into a landscape architect-designed yard with distinct elements that complement a traditional-meets-modern home
Full Story
Wonderful! So thoughtful and beautifully done. Beehives? There are quite a few beekeepers in the city but this planting ensures pollen and nectar for native bees and Honeybees. The endangered Rusty patch Bumblebee has been seen in MPLS. Maybe in this garden too!
I appreciate the care the author took to explain design choices from both functional and aesthetic purposes, tying together art and function and also highlighting the importance of considering possible future needs. This article can help with decision making for many projects as a result.
That is owned by some very good friends of my wife. I've been in that sauna a handful of times. It's just as beautiful in person as it is in those images.