House leeks - planting on a roof?

[David]

Looking at on line information, it is commonly said that house leeks used
to be commonly grown on the roof (possibly to ward of lightning!).

The descriptions then go on to describe all sorts of methods of planting,
but none for a roof.

Does anyone have experience of successfully planting a house leek on a
pitched clay tile roof?

Cheers



Dave R

[N_Cook]

Post by David
Looking at on line information, it is commonly said that house leeks used
to be commonly grown on the roof (possibly to ward of lightning!).
The descriptions then go on to describe all sorts of methods of planting,
but none for a roof.
Does anyone have experience of successfully planting a house leek on a
pitched clay tile roof?
Cheers
Dave R

Don't know about house leeks. But a trick for toning down modern tile
replacements to make less obvious a mismatch with existing clay tiles is
to cover the roof with yogurt to encourage lichen, presumably live yogurt

[Andy Burns]

Post by David
Looking at on line information, it is commonly said that house leeks used
to be commonly grown on the roof (possibly to ward of lightning!).
The descriptions then go on to describe all sorts of methods of planting,
but none for a roof.
Does anyone have experience of successfully planting a house leek on a
pitched clay tile roof?

Not as such, my grandparents used to have one (not sure it was meant to
fulfil any specific purpose) when their bungalow was being sold mum
retrieved it, from then on it used to live happily on a paving slab in
the garden.

Not sure what happened to it, but it's no longer there, otherwise I
would probably retrieve it ...

[Chris Hogg]

Post by David
Looking at on line information, it is commonly said that house leeks used
to be commonly grown on the roof (possibly to ward of lightning!).
The descriptions then go on to describe all sorts of methods of planting,
but none for a roof.
Does anyone have experience of successfully planting a house leek on a
pitched clay tile roof?
Cheers
Dave R

Never tried them, but there are lots on the roofs of bungalows on the
Isles of Scilly. I have the feeling they're mostly self-seeded.

If I wanted to grow them on the roof, I would collect a few 'babies'
that sprout from around the base of the parent plant, each with an
inch or so of stem. Make up a little very gritty compost, say 1:2 fine
grit to compost. Choose the south-facing slope, or as near as you can,
and very slightly raise the edge of a roof tile. Stuff some of the
gritty mix under the tile, followed by a baby houseleek stem. Repeat
as required.

It is very important that you get the planting done BEFORE you fall
off the roof, otherwise your efforts in getting up there will have
been wasted.

[alan_m]

Post by Chris Hogg

Post by David
Looking at on line information, it is commonly said that house leeks used
to be commonly grown on the roof (possibly to ward of lightning!).
The descriptions then go on to describe all sorts of methods of planting,
but none for a roof.
Does anyone have experience of successfully planting a house leek on a
pitched clay tile roof?
Cheers
Dave R

Never tried them, but there are lots on the roofs of bungalows on the
Isles of Scilly. I have the feeling they're mostly self-seeded.
If I wanted to grow them on the roof, I would collect a few 'babies'
that sprout from around the base of the parent plant, each with an
inch or so of stem. Make up a little very gritty compost, say 1:2 fine
grit to compost. Choose the south-facing slope, or as near as you can,
and very slightly raise the edge of a roof tile. Stuff some of the
gritty mix under the tile, followed by a baby houseleek stem. Repeat
as required.
It is very important that you get the planting done BEFORE you fall
off the roof, otherwise your efforts in getting up there will have
been wasted.

Is it really a good idea to plant something like this, or encourage the
growth of lichen or moss, on a roof? Anything that can remain wet and
grows into the cracks or imperfections in a tiled roof is likely to
start causing spalling in freezing weather.

I do wonder about the eco warriors proposing living roofs. In two
different parts of the country I seen one largish public building in
each area where they have been built with a living roof, presumably
initially planted with low growing succulents. A few years on they now
look like s**t completely overtaken with self seeded grasses and weeds
which are greenish for a month or two in spring but then all die off as
soon as the weather gets a bit hotter. Possibly a fire hazard will all
that tinder dry hay on the roof. One of the building is also clad in eco
friendly wood shingles :)

[N_Cook]

Post by alan_m

Post by Chris Hogg

Post by David
Looking at on line information, it is commonly said that house leeks used
to be commonly grown on the roof (possibly to ward of lightning!).
The descriptions then go on to describe all sorts of methods of planting,
but none for a roof.
Does anyone have experience of successfully planting a house leek on a
pitched clay tile roof?
Cheers
Dave R

Never tried them, but there are lots on the roofs of bungalows on the
Isles of Scilly. I have the feeling they're mostly self-seeded.
If I wanted to grow them on the roof, I would collect a few 'babies'
that sprout from around the base of the parent plant, each with an
inch or so of stem. Make up a little very gritty compost, say 1:2 fine
grit to compost. Choose the south-facing slope, or as near as you can,
and very slightly raise the edge of a roof tile. Stuff some of the
gritty mix under the tile, followed by a baby houseleek stem. Repeat
as required.
It is very important that you get the planting done BEFORE you fall
off the roof, otherwise your efforts in getting up there will have
been wasted.

Is it really a good idea to plant something like this, or encourage the
growth of lichen or moss, on a roof? Anything that can remain wet and
grows into the cracks or imperfections in a tiled roof is likely to
start causing spalling in freezing weather.
I do wonder about the eco warriors proposing living roofs. In two
different parts of the country I seen one largish public building in
each area where they have been built with a living roof, presumably
initially planted with low growing succulents. A few years on they now
look like s**t completely overtaken with self seeded grasses and weeds
which are greenish for a month or two in spring but then all die off as
soon as the weather gets a bit hotter. Possibly a fire hazard will all
that tinder dry hay on the roof. One of the building is also clad in eco
friendly wood shingles :)

Not that we get snow build up on roofs these days, but all that extra
weight up there especially when wet, must be much the same Damocleah
type situation.

[Chris Hogg]

Post by alan_m

Post by Chris Hogg

Post by David
Looking at on line information, it is commonly said that house leeks used
to be commonly grown on the roof (possibly to ward of lightning!).
The descriptions then go on to describe all sorts of methods of planting,
but none for a roof.
Does anyone have experience of successfully planting a house leek on a
pitched clay tile roof?
Cheers
Dave R

Never tried them, but there are lots on the roofs of bungalows on the
Isles of Scilly. I have the feeling they're mostly self-seeded.
If I wanted to grow them on the roof, I would collect a few 'babies'
that sprout from around the base of the parent plant, each with an
inch or so of stem. Make up a little very gritty compost, say 1:2 fine
grit to compost. Choose the south-facing slope, or as near as you can,
and very slightly raise the edge of a roof tile. Stuff some of the
gritty mix under the tile, followed by a baby houseleek stem. Repeat
as required.
It is very important that you get the planting done BEFORE you fall
off the roof, otherwise your efforts in getting up there will have
been wasted.

Is it really a good idea to plant something like this, or encourage the
growth of lichen or moss, on a roof? Anything that can remain wet and
grows into the cracks or imperfections in a tiled roof is likely to
start causing spalling in freezing weather.

+1. Probably OK in West Cornwall or the IoS, where frosts are slight
or rare, but perhaps not further up country.

I have self-seeded ferns growing on the north side of my bungalow
roof, also ditto on the garage, which seem resistant to spraying, but
they've been there for many decades with no apparent problems. But it
is a wet-laid scantle slate roof, so may behave differently to a tiled
roof. https://jsroofing.co.uk/wet-lay-cornish-scantle-roofing/

Post by alan_m
I do wonder about the eco warriors proposing living roofs. In two
different parts of the country I seen one largish public building in
each area where they have been built with a living roof, presumably
initially planted with low growing succulents. A few years on they now
look like s**t completely overtaken with self seeded grasses and weeds
which are greenish for a month or two in spring but then all die off as
soon as the weather gets a bit hotter. Possibly a fire hazard will all
that tinder dry hay on the roof. One of the building is also clad in eco
friendly wood shingles :)

+1
I would avoid a green roof wherever possible. Unsightly most of the
time, and more trouble than they're worth. There was one on a
new-build not far from my previous house, and it was awful, just as
you describe.