David Epstein: Hi! I'm David Epstein for Growing Wisdom and I'm here today at New England Grows which is a horticultural trade show for landscape professionals. So it's not something consumers come to, but I'm here today to really learn about many of the new technologies going on, learn about some of the problems in landscapes and some of the ways that people are landscaping that are really different.
I'm going to go listen to a couple of lectures. We are going to walk the trade show floor. We're going to show it all to you and this year, I'm very excited to listen to Ed Snodgrass, who is going to be talking about green roofs and what a wonderful concept.
Ed Snodgrass: You have your deck and you are waterproofing and insulation. You have to have a way get the water off the roof. You have to have a way to separate soil particles from water particles. It has to drain properly. Soil has to be engineered for the plant material that's going up there, and you have to choose plants that are appropriate to the site.
Here is the building in DC that eliminated air-conditioning using green features,living wall, green roofs.
David Epstein: How many times the buzz words going on this industry now?
Ed Snodgrass: Well, I think the big one is sustainability, green design, there is a new phrase out, that's going to be more and more in lexicon and that's ecosystem services. So the services that plant supply to people. There is going to be a shift away from purely ornamental horticulture, to ornamental horticulture plus horticulture that serves some function, especially in urban areas where there is so much impact on the environment from buildings, from highways, from rooftops. That's our green roof.
That's the Boston World Trade Center and there is a thin vegetated roof on the pavilion there that we supplied the plants for.
David Epstein: Any other advice for landscape professionals?
Ed Snodgrass: Well, the sustainability market is going to be a knowledge-intensive market. So you can't separate product from knowledge and because it's in a disciplinary, there you are working across disciplines, you are working with architects and engineers, storm water professionals, and there is no substitute for knowing this body of knowledge. If you just try to go with product alone, you're not going to be on a competitive position.
David Epstein: What they would plan to put on a roof?
Ed Snodgrass: I think some Sedum Spurium probably, a long layer. I am very functional guy, so it's a great workhorse plan. The way I work with designers, I get to define the crayon box and they do the drawing.
David Epstein: Great, thank you. Come back every week for all our tips, hints and helps at Growing Wisdom.
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