Green Roof Training » Butterflies

Black Horehound (Ballota nigra) – Green Roof Plant

DustyG — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 07:26:37 +0000

Black Horehound (Ballota nigra) is a great plant for wildlife on green roofs. It is a perennial, with heart-shaped, bright green, toothed leaves that turn black once the plant has flowered. The stems go a purple/black as well. But it is the mauve/pink flowers that make it a star plant for bees, butterflies and other [...]

Flax (Linaceae) – green roof plants

DustyG — Mon, 30 May 2011 16:27:52 +0000

Flax (Linaceae) can be found on green roofs throughout the northern temperate world.

I have seen them on roofs in Canada and in the US, including Narrow-leaved (Linum bienne) and Western Blue (Linum perrene), which is the best species to plant in the UK. They grow readily on green roofs in the UK and across Europe. [...]

Green roof plant of the week – Bulbous buttercup (Ranunculus bulbosus)

DustyG — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 14:42:27 +0000

A bright yellow plant of dry pastures, grassy slopes and well-drained calcareous soils the Bulbous buttercup (Ranunculus bulbosus) is well suited to extensive green roofs of a reasonable depth -greater than 100mm).

The bulbous root can survive the long dry periods that green roofs can be exposed to and also give’s it’s old and alternative name [...]

Green roof plant of the week – Musk Mallow

DustyG — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 14:39:11 +0000

This delightful ice-pink flower is a real beauty and can add elegance and colour to any small scale green roof.

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The Musk Mallow (Malva moschata) is an erect perennial with multiple stems and a delicate 5 petaled pink flower of dry grasslands. This makes it ideally suited to be planted [...]

Green roof plant of the week – Red Valerian

DustyG — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 12:20:58 +0000

Originally from the Mediterranean, this showy plant can be found on walls, waste ground, railway banks and cliffs. As it thrives in well-drained soils it is a perfect for planting on green roofs.

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Centranthrus ruber and Common Blue Butterfly

The plant also has a long flowering season from early summer [...]

Green roof plant of the week – Lady’s Bedstraw

DustyG — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 17:34:04 +0000

Lady’s Bedstraw is found on dry, sandy sites, grasslands and dunes. Being suited to dry and well drained situations make’s it an ideal for green roofs.

Burnet moth on Lad's Bedstraw

The small yellow flowers are very attractive to a range of wildlife, especially butterflies, bees and moths. Specific species include Six-spotted burnet moth [...]

Green roof plant of the week – Common Knapweed

DustyG — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 21:52:03 +0000

Common Knapweed (Centaurea nigra) is a classic plant of rough grassland, dry meadows and road verges. This makes it ideal for planting on small scale large green roofs. It is also a great plant and is included in my species lists for brown roofs and biodiverse roofs.

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‘Hardheads’ as they are [...]