My favorite local blogger, Carole Cohen (Cleveland, OH), has written a post on greening our air and rooftops to not only help air quality but also to reduce energy costs by cooling the building. I didn’t want to hijack her blog, so decided to write a coordinated article here.
Her blog about planting grass and flowers on rooftops reminded me of a home in Marysville many years ago that had a sod rooftop. Remember, Marysville is the home of Scotts Lawn Products, so many residents are extremely passionate about grass. The owner of the “sod roof” home would mow and fertilize it just as he would his regular lawn. I don’t know whether this home still has a sod roof, or whether the home still exists since it would now be surrounded by big box stores and car dealerships. I’ll have to look the next time I drive up Rt 33 to the Rt 36 junction.
In the late 70’s/early 80’s, at their former downtown Marysville office, Scotts purposely grew a section of lawn on a concrete pad to show retailers and consumers that “good” soil wasn’t necessary to have a good lawn. The sod was a little thicker than what homeowners receive from regular sod growers, but not by much. It was fun to watch the surprise on people’s faces when the sod was pulled back to expose the concrete. If grass can be grown on concrete, it could be grown on rooftops as well … just as it grew on the home I mentioned.
I checked Ashton’s blog (the “Scotts Expert“) to see if he has an old photo posted there of the conrete with the sod, but didn’t see it. I know those photos exist. Maybe I can entice him to add it to his blog or to write a post about greening our rooftops to help with our energy costs. If he does, I’ll add a link to it here.
Could be a new niche market for Miracle-Gro. I want royalties for suggesting it !!!!!!!!!!
EDITED: Here’s the link to the grass-on-concrete photo. Enjoy the 70’s hair style. 
Copyright © 2008. Reproduction of any portion of this blog post or the images is prohibited by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. If this post is being viewed on any site other than www.ReesesPiecesOfRealEstate.com then the material has been stolen without permission. Violators will be reported.
Elaine Reese
614-825-8860Real Living HER
2 responses so far ↓
Carole Cohen // July 14, 2008 at 8:41 pm
I love it! Hair and all! I think it’s a fascinating idea and apartment buildings here for years have had regular soil flower and veggie gardens so this grass idea is intriguing too. I hope he does a post on it! and more photos yes! (Great hair lolol) I think this is an excellent way to go.
Elaine Reese // July 14, 2008 at 10:55 pm
Carole, have you ever noticed on The Today Show, they sometimes have a view of the landscaped area and mini-garden when they do overhead shots. I think it looks pretty cool to see some of those penthouse gardens. What a nice respite to the concrete canyons in NYC.
Leave a Comment