Don’t have enough place to grow that lovely garden you’ve been thinking of? Well, how about using your roof to grow flowers and trees? In Norway most of the houses have been covered with turf (also called sod roofs) of different varieties. A number of turf roofs have flowers mixed in with the grass, and a few have small trees. The tradition is going on for more than hundreds of years now. There are great advantages of turf roofs. They are very heavy, so they help to stabilize the house; they provide good insulation; and they are long-lasting.

In Scandinavia roofs are covered with birch bark and sod since prehistory. In rural areas sod roofs were almost universal until the beginning of the 18th century. During the 19th century, tile roofs gradually superseded sod roofs except in remote inland areas. Corrugated iron and other industrial materials also became a threat to ancient traditions. But just before extinction, the national romantics proclaimed a revival of vernacular traditions, including sod roofs. A new market was opened by the demand for mountain lodges and holiday homes. At the same time, open air museums and the preservation movement created a reservation for ancient building traditions. From these reservations, sod roofs have begun to reappear as an alternative to modern materials.

Since 2000, an award is also given to the best green roof project in Scandinavia by the board of the Scandinavian Green Roof Association.

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