Plant evaluations for living roofs in Auckland, New Zealand

Abstract

An extensive living roof is constructed with load bearing structures with a deep layer of soil media that supports a range of plants. Living roofs have environmental benefits, particularly in an urban setting, such as slowing water runoff and promoting evapotranspiration. Auckland Botanic Gardens (ABG) has been trialling different native and exotic plant species on living roofs to identify top performing plants for these unique growing conditions. The living roofs at ABG were constructed and planted in 2010, so after 10 years of observations, we are able to provide plant lists of what has worked well, challenges with the type of roofs we have, and the adventive species observed.