Until the late 19th century, throughout Scandinavia it was more than usual to see houses with roof made of birch bark and sod. Turf roofs were an inestimable help for people to make their house draught-proof and to provide efficient insulation … Continue reading →

As the mean streets of many cities undergo a renaissance into vibrant downtown meccas, rooftop and terrace gardens, largely invisible to the public eye, are creating a verdant canopy. Once wryly referred to as “tar beaches,” hot, windswept apartment roofs … Continue reading →

Towering over the skyline of the Taiwanese city of Taichung, this superstructure could become one of the most surreal buildings on the entire planet. Huge 1,000ft high beams of steel stretch into the sky creating a giant triangular frame which … Continue reading →

As temperatures soared over 90 degrees and New York City broke records for electricity use at the end of July, landscapers were installing a “green” roof at Silvercup Studios in Long Island City, Queens, where parts of the HBO series … Continue reading →

To some they are a rural escape in the centre of the city, to others they are a chance to test their green fingers and design skills. Now London mayor Boris Johnson has found a new use for urban roof … Continue reading →

Martin Grant’s garden is perched like a stork’s nest on a 17th-century rooftop, close to the Seine in the heart of Paris. After much searching, this garden was the main reason Grant, a fashion designer, bought his fourth-floor home. Such … Continue reading →

For 2010, Londoners will continue to grow-their-own-everything with a _____ vengeance, whether in garden, allotment, on balcony or rooftop. “In the uncertainty of a recession we want soil, roots, and a sense of place and belonging,” notes horticultural historian Christopher … Continue reading →

NEW YORK Like many a farmer, Ben Flanner rises with the sun. Like most crops, his need water and weeding — bright tomatoes and fragrant basil, delicate nasturtiums, mottled melons and black eggplants, mustard greens, puntarelle, peas, beets, beans, kale … Continue reading →

Like many Londoners I’ve been to Kensington Roof Gardens and marvelled at its fountains and lawns, rose beds and even flamingos. But it’s always struck me as a one-off: could anyone replicate a garden like that on a roof right … Continue reading →

Plants sprout out of the roof of the St. Joan of Arc Church in the South Bronx. This shallow garden of assorted plants – called a rooftop wellness garden – helps reduce pollution and the energy needed to heat and … Continue reading →