Green Roofs in the Desert: Comparing Grass and Lavender

Abstract

Green roofs are an exciting development in modern architecture. Although they have been used throughout history, they are seeing a resurgence as a way to aid in insulation in buildings passively. Since they are a fairly new topic of modern research, there is little information on different plant types for green roofs in desert climates. This paper measures and compares differences between two types of plants for green roof application, grass, and lavender. These two plants will be tested in multiple categories to determine their strengths and weaknesses compared to each other. This paper shows the benefits of choosing one type of plant over another by thoroughly analyzing multiple variables. The tested variables are interior temperature, water use, drought tolerance, initial cost, soil loss, growth, and potential future growth. This paper identified soil as the primary component of insulation in green roofs. Grass and lavender are evenly split on advantages and disadvantages. However, lavender would be a better choice in a desert climate due to its higher drought tolerance and lower water use.