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Scholarly papers: Butler, C., E. Butler, and C.M. Orians. 2010. Beyond buzzwords: A scientific evaluation of the rationales behind green roof native mania. In press. Proc of Cities Alive, Vancouver, Canada; Butler, C. and C.M. Orians. 2009. Sedum facilitates the growth of neighboring plants on a green roof under water-limited conditions. Proc of the 7th International Green Roof Conference: Greening Rooftops for Sustainable Communities, Atlanta; Carter, T. and C. Butler. 2008. Ecological impacts of replacing traditional roofs with green roofs in two urban areas. Cities and the Environment 1(2): article 9, 17 pp.

Selected Press Coverage: Kline, K. 2010. Green roofs: not just for looks. Ecotone: The Ecological Society of America Blog. August 4, 2010; Howard, M. 2010. Greening the rooftop: A garden on top of Tisch Library is a biology student?s proving ground for urban environmentalism. Tufts Journal. June 16, 2010. For more information, please contact Colleen Butler, colleenbutler (at) gmail (dot) com.’

The goal of this green roof was to function as an experimental site for research conducted by the Tufts Green Roof Collaborative. It also serves as an educational display for members of the Tufts community and visitors.

We used a custom modular design on an existing roof. Tufts Facilities Dept added a second layer of rubber above the original membrane to prevent damage from foot traffic. Modules are made of plastic (15.75″ x 15.75″ x 5 ” deep), purchased as mini tree pot trays (TRAY6) from Stuewe and Sons (about $2 each). In each module, we added a combined drainage layer and filter fabric (Enkadrain 9611, about $0.50 per square foot). Above that we added an additional filter fabric (landscaping weed block fabric from a local hardware store, very inexpensive). We used a substrate mix of 55% expanded shale, 30% sand, and 15% leaf compost (purchased from Reed Custom Soils, about $140 per cubic yard). We are looking at plant performance, so we bought a wide range of plants, mostly from Emory Knoll Farms and North Creek Nursery.

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