Environment - Green Roofing

Angela Lambert of QLawns, & Enviromat on the benefits 'green roofing' can bring to your garden and to the environment.

 

Green Roofing using sedum matting products such as Enviromat from Q Lawns is a relatively new concept for the landscaping industry in the UK. Other European countries have been using sedum matting and enjoying the benefits for some years now however, Britain is catching up! Green roofs appear most years at Hampton Court and Chelsea and celebrity gardeners frequently make reference to roof planting.

 

Sedum matting can be used for vast number of different gardening structures and projects. A green roof on top of a garden structure or a surrounding of sedum matting to disguise a pond liner is the perfect, low maintenance way to bring vibrancy and wildlife into your garden.  Enviromat sedum matting consists of low growing, drought tolerant sedum plants, grown on to geo-textile matting for versatility and strength.  It is delivered to site with approximately 95% plant coverage and simply needs to be unrolled (like turf) and fixed onto a prepared surface to create an instant garden.

Enviromat is low maintenance, it doesn’t need mowing or trimming and only needs feeding once or twice a year with fertiliser, perfect for clients who require easy to maintain gardens and ideal for larger sites such as central reservations on dual carriageways where access is difficult. Enviromat looks fantastic all year consisting as it does of a random mix of evergreen sedum species that flower from early Spring to late Autumn and then in the winter it can go a beautiful blush red colour bringing all year round interest to the area.

 

“Sedums are ideal plants for the busy person who would like to transform a piece of land into an attractive landscape feature with a minimum of effort and very low maintenance requirements."

Professor Ray Stephenson

 

Used on the roof, Sedum Matting brings with it a range of advantages including insulation against heat and cold, protection against UV light – thus doubling the life of the waterproofing, aesthetics, increased biodiversity and the knowledge that bringing green plants to an otherwise barren area is helping to improve air quality and combat the effects of global warming.

 

Q Lawns have published a simple guide to creating a green roof using Enviromat, which outlines the criteria that the building needs to meet before successfully installing the sedum matting.  Weight bearing capacity, drainage, the amount of sunlight, the slope of the roof are all factors that must be considered carefully if the living roof is indeed to survive.  The guide is free and can be downloaded from the web site at www.enviromat.co.uk or ordered direct from Q Lawns on 01842 828266.  

 

For more details about using Enviromat for landscaping, contact either Angela Lambert or Hannah Driscoll at Q Lawns on 01842 828266. Email hannahd@qlawns.co.uk or sales@qlawns.co.uk  or visit the newly re-vamped website at www.enviromat.co.uk