Make a Green Roof Model

funded byU.S. Green Building Council

Materials• Plastic container

• Filter Material, cut to fit container• Fleece, cut to fit container

• Potting soil, enough for a thin layer• Sedum, 1-2 plants, sometimes sold as

“stonecrop”• Water

Tools•Drill

•Scissors

Filter MaterialA cut-to-fit furnace filter made of recycled materials is a good representation of the filtration level on the Ford Rouge’s Green Roof. They are inexpensive at big-box home stores, and one filter is enough for several models.

Select a ContainerThis project can be made large or small. A transparent or translucent container allows students to see the completed layers.

Select your container and drill a few drainage holes in the bottom. The Green Roof drains water to a collection system to be reused.

Filter Layer

Measure your container, and cut filter material to fit.

Options

A layer of packing peanuts can be used in place of the filter material. Be sure they are not the kind that dissolves when wet!

Fleece Layer

Add a layer of fleece on top of the green filter or packing peanuts. Some fabric stores sell fleece made of recycled plastic called eco-fleece! This layer will hold water for the sedum.

So Far…Your project should look like this:

Soil Layer

Next, add a thin layer of potting soil on top.

This layer is so the sedum roots can hold on. On the Green Roof, this layer is made of a crushed shale mixture.

Last Step… Add sedum plants and enough water to

dampen the soil. Sedum requires almost no upkeep.

There is a sprinkler system on the Green Roof, but it has almost never been used!