Building a garden and landscape design can be tricky when you live in a city and the only place for any type of shrubbery is the rooftop. But don’t give up hope so easily. Rooftop gardens can be an amazing experience, both in the garden layout and design process and afterwards when you get to enjoy the fruits of your gardening labor. If you live in a big city, like New York City, and want to grow a garden full of greenery, small trees and flowers, you’re in luck today. We’re going to be listing out five of the best flowers and plants to grow on your rooftop garden. Read along to get inspired!
Kousa Dogwood (Cornus kousa)
Technically a tree, the Kousa Dogwood is fairly small, making for the perfect greenery plant for a rooftop garden. In the spring and summer, enjoy the stunning white and pink flowers with rich green foliage. In the fall, watch the colors turn to a dark red. Growing about 20 feet tall and wide, the Kousa Dogwood grows best in partial sun and moist soil. You’ll definitely want to add this to your rooftop garden and landscape design.
Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia)
Who doesn’t include lavender in their landscape design? This is a must-have plant for your rooftop garden. Not only is the smell enticing and comforting, but this plant can fit well in a rooftop garden bed and can handle both windy and dry conditions. Requiring full sun, a lavender plant is the ideal addition to your rooftop.
Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick (Corylus avellana)
Add some personality to your garden design with the Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick plant. With such an interesting name, you know you’re going to love it. This filbert shrub twists and turns as it grows, producing rich green foliage that will complement its surrounding flowers and plants. This plant requires full to partial sun and is low maintenance.
Daylily (Hemerocallis)
Add some color into your garden design with the Daylily flower. Pink, orange, red and blue, your rooftop will be full of color in no time. Daylilies require partial to full sun for healthy growth, but are also drought tolerant, making for the ideal rooftop garden situation. Low maintenance and fragrant, you’ll want a few of these in your spring and summer garden.
Japanese Wisteria (Wisteria)
If you are adding a garden trellis or pergola to your landscape design, you’ll want some Japanese Wisteria. Drap these blooms over a trellis or pergola and watch the vines grow. The fragrant flowers grow best in full sun and require little maintenance. You’ll love having these blue, pink and white flowers in your garden as you sit back and relax in the sun in your rooftop garden.
Don’t let your rooftop garden make you feel limited in your landscape design process. There are many beautiful and unique flower and plant options that will thrive in this environment. Call Amber Freda Landscape Design for city gardening expertise!
