Watering System for Rooftop Garden
by Benjamin Haunschild
Description and Rationale
Rooftop gardens- A Cleaner and Greener City
Rooftop gardens are an increasingly popular conservation technique that is being used in many of the larger cities of the world. These gardens are also quite common on garden enthusiasts roofs who don’t have the outdoor room for a conventional garden. This technology has not yet been officially introduced to the Philippines, which could easily benefit from the propagation of rooftop gardens.
How would rooftop gardens, if a large number were able to be made, affect the environment in the Manila? Could it, through photosynthesis, help the problem Manila has with pollution? Hundreds or thousands, of rooftop gardens would dramatically reduce the amount of smog and the numerous diseases potentially caused by smog, such as lung cancer or asthma.
One rooftop garden on an apartment building has the potential to provide a family with vegetables and other essential foods for a family. The garden would require lots of time and work to sustain, and possibly a watering system for the dry season, or shade for certain plants. For a family with very little income a rooftop garden could also provide some money, if extra vegetables, fruits or flowers were grown and sold. A rooftop garden could also help during the rainy season, when leaks or runoff is causing problems. The soil in a rooftop garden absorbs a large amount of rain and would possibly reduce leaks into a house and reduce the amount of runoff into the sewer drains.
To start this project I will research the primary effects on a household, and what would be required to sustain such a garden on a roof like Faith Academy’s, mainly by interviewing the janitorial faculty of FAA. It will also be necessary to research the structure of the roof, to make sure leaks from watering, or weight from the plants and soil does not cause problems for the roof. Finding out these important variables will guide the actual process of the experiment and the requirements for the garden, in weight and drainage.
Optimistically, an example of a fully functional garden on Faith Academy’s rooftop will inspire other organizations and households to do the same, for the benefit of the community, for food, and to create cleaner and better looking environment.
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Biology
Common Names and Synonyms
Chlorophyta are often referred to as green algae. There are several different types of green algae with different names applying to them all. The most likely type of Chlorophyta algae to be found in a tank and potentially harm it would be Hair Algae, Hard Dot Algae and Green Bloom, an algae that rapidly reproduces in water giving it a strong greenish tint. Often green algae is interchanged with cyanobacteria or blue green bacteria, but they are just photosynthesizing bacteria.
Classification
Kingdom: Protista
Phyla: Chlorophyta
Class: Coscinodiscophyceae
Order: Hemiaulales
Family: Hemiaulaceae
Genus: Climacodium
Species: Climacodium moniligera
Climacodium moniligera is a fairly common form of hair algae that can be found in freshwater aquariums.
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Morphology and Physical Description
Chlorophyta are green algae that range in size from single celled organisms to larger seaweeds like Ulva lactica. All Chlorophyta algae are eukaryotic, meaning they contain a cell nucleus, and other organelles. All Chlorophyta have chloroplasts, and many have flagella for movement. Most of the algae concerning tanks do not have any form of movement and are either free floating or adhere to walls and plants. Single-celled green algae are the cause of Green Bloom. These algae are free floaters and don’t adhere to any surface because they have no flagella. Algae found on walls are often colonial, so they clump together in groups. Multi-cellular algae are algae that form larger organisms like Hair Algae or Beard Algae or seaweed.
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Getting Food
All Chlorophyta algae get their food by photosynthesis, but Chlorophyta use two main pigments for this process, chlorophyll a and b. These pigments, along with other pigments called carotenoids algae are able to absorb a wide range of light waves, except for yellow green to orange. Green algae also thrive in nutrient rich environments with lots of nitrates or other fish wastes.
Reproduction
Most unicellular algae reproduce using asexual reproduction, but many can reproduce sexually too. Asexual reproduction is mitosis in all types of Chlorophyta, whereas there are several different types of sexual reproduction. Alternation of generations is a complex sexual cycle that involves a spore producing a diploid sporophyte and a gamete producing haploid gametophyte. Alternation of generations is a common characteristic of multi-cellular algae. In unicellular or colonial algae reproduction primarily takes place asexually. This is a simple process of the cell dividing with mitosis, and each individual zoospore created grows into a mature cell and repeats the process. A few algae also make specialized gamete making cells for sexual reproduction but this is less common. Chlorophyta specifically has different species that reproduce in all three ways.
Environmental Factors
Most Chlorophyta live in the photic zone, the lighted area of ponds, lakes or oceans, or in a symbiotic relationship with fungi called lichen. Chlorophyta makes up a large part of the phytoplankton food chain and is critical to the survival of the oceanic ecosystem. Most species of whales and many fish survive on phytoplankton as their main food source. Chlorophyta are primary producers and feed on no organism, but do have the potential to cause deaths, if they “steal” all the nutrients or O2 from the water so other organisms die.
Origin and Distribution
Chlorophyta are thought to have evolved from primitive eukaryotic cell containing cyanobacteria. This is general only believed by evolutionist though, whereas Christians believe that God made Chlorophyta along with every other living thing on earth. Green algae are distributed nearly everywhere on the globe, from the arctic oceans to tropical rainforests, since Green algae thrive wherever there is adequate of light, water and nutrients.
Importance to People
Chlorophyta are one of the most common cause of problems for tanks and aquariums. Filamentous hair algae is most likely to cause a blockage in machinery. Fortunately it is quite easily removed and not too damaging to equipment. Green Bloom algae is really only a problem in aquariums, unless it absorbs nutrients necessary for plants in a watering system. Hard Dot Algae is little or no problem in a watering tank, and only obscures the view for aquariums. Algae scum that builds up on the surface of still water could present problems for a holding container or for an aquarium, but it is usually only found on lakes or ponds, so is of little consequence for this project.
Algae can indirectly cause disease to humans, by algae-filtering shellfish. When an algae bloom occurs and any toxins are made by the algae are built up in shellfish then when the shellfish are eaten by humans it can have many serious effects, including paralysis and short term memory loss. Algae blooms have been thought to be the product of excess nitrogen and phosphorus being dumped into the coasts from factories, but it has not been confirmed.
Survivability and Endangered Status
Chlorophyta can survive a large range of factors in their environment, because they only need light, water and nutrients to stay alive. They also are capable of doubling their population in less than an hour, making them very hard to eliminate. No species of Chlorophyta is in any danger of entering the threatened or endangered species list.
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Potential Solutions
How would rooftop gardens all over Manila affect this city? How could it benefit its people? No real rooftop gardens have been established in Manila. The effects of an actual rooftop garden on the structure of a roof have not been verified, nor the necessary work needed to maintain a profitable garden. The possibilities for a rooftop garden are numerous, but there are three main ways to utilize these gardens. Of course there are ways to conserve resources in doing so, since it is expensive and hard to transport material, especially water, to very elevated positions. Drip irrigation is the most profitable way of using less water for the same purpose, while still providing the plants with water.
Possibility 1: SOURCE OF INCOME
Rooftop gardens could provide a reasonable amount of money to a family. Plants with fibrous roots or plants that require many hours of sunlight would be ideal for a rooftop garden. For a good source of money the plants would have to be able to be sold at a market, like pineapple or potatoes. The structural integrity of a rooftop would also be important in the planning of a rooftop garden. Homes made out of plywood and sheet metal in the Philippines may not be able to support the weight of the soil and plants.
Advantage 1: A easily produced source of income, rooftop gardens could create a way for jobless squatter families to provide money. Any excess vegetables or fruit from the garden could be taken to the market and sold.
Advantage 2: Sustaining a rooftop garden would give someone a sense of accomplishment in providing for their family. Anyone else in the family who did not have a job could be given the responsibility of maintaining the garden.
Disadvantage 1: The food grown on the rooftop might also be difficult to market on a regular basis. Since the source of food would not be as large or as high of a quality as a larger business like Dole, some markets may not receive their products.
Involved in rooftop gardens, irrigation becomes a factor in maintenance, productivity and profit. The use of drip irrigation can aid the gardener in conserving natural resources while using easily obtained materials. Drip irrigation is capable of using much less water than a sprinkling system, but is more likely to be clogged. I experimented with drip irrigation and set up a system to water 6 papaya plants in order to determine its effectiveness.
In setting up the drip irrigation system I found that it was not very labor intensive and the only equipment needed was a 1 inch drill bit and a drip irrigation kit. The actual set up was a little confusing and took a few trial and errors to get the valve set up correctly. The irrigation system itself then proved to be very leaky and much of the water was diverted from the papaya plants. This leaking problem could easily be diverted with waterproof glue or even sticky tack to seal the crack more completely. This leak was probably caused by my It was quite obvious though, in spite of the leaking, that drip irrigation would use much less water than a sprinkling system.
Advantage 3: When using drip irrigation less water is used to provide the needed water for the plants. Since much of the water is lost in evaporation or the water completely missing the plant it is inefficient.
Disadvantage 2: Irrigation systems that don’t use high pressure and have sitting water are liable to build up algae in the tubing or water container. The most troublesome algae would be hair algae since it could easily clog the containing system. Fortunately the algae could be effectively eliminated if the watering system were kept out of the light.
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Possibility 2:Source of Food
Rooftop gardens, along with a source of income, could provide food for a poor family. Each rooftop garden would be able to provide for a family, and some excess food, which could be sold for more income. It would be more productive to grow a variety of edible plants, so that a family can have a varied and flexible diet. A variety of plants help to sustain the fertility of the soil and are less likely to be wiped out by an insect or disease.
Advantage 1: The food provided by a garden would help negate the lack of money from a squatter family and give needed food to children. Certain fruits may also be able to be
grown as a supplement for vital nutrients.
Advantage 2: Creating a simple and easy to make source of food for the poor would help ministry in teaching people about God’s creation and in helping the environment. Helping these people like this would be pleasing to God and would help them survive and find God’s love.
Disadvantage 1: A rooftop garden would require lots of time and work to sustain it, not allowing as much time for other jobs. The only way around this would be to create automatic watering systems, but for poor families that would be unreasonable and impossible.
Disadvantage 2: Poor families who would grow their own food would not have the money or resources to buy fertilizer and pesticides to help the growth of the plants. This may cause the plants to be unfit to eat, or be of much less quality than store bought goods.
Disadvantage 3: Providing water for the plants would be a troublesome and time consuming task. A pump system would be unreasonable for a garden several floors up, and even carrying enough water for a garden a single floor would be tiresome. A pump is unreasonable for a poor family living on an upper apartment floor.
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Possibility 3:Reducing Carbon Dioxide Emissions
A rooftop garden in a heavily polluted area like Manila would help reduce the carbon dioxide emissions from the thousands of Jeepneys and trikes in the city. One single garden would be insignificant in the city but a large number could help clear the skyline.
Advantage 1: Plants on rooftop gardens would increase the rate that carbon dioxide is being changed into oxygen by photosynthesis. This increase would help remove the build up of CO2 emissions in Manila. This reduction of smog and pollution would help respiratory problems and clear up the skyline of Manila.
Disadvantage 1: The amount of rooftop gardens needed to create a significant difference in the carbon dioxide buildup in the atmosphere would have to be extremely large. Thousands of gardens would have to be made to create a noticeable difference by the human senses, and even that would be insignificant.
Disadvantage 2: The labor involved in the making a large number of rooftop gardens would be great. Carbon would likely be put into the atmosphere from the making of the rooftop gardens. These emissions would effectively negate the helping factor of the rooftop gardens for a period of time, but the gardens would eventually exceed the original output of CO2.
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Bibliography
“Algae Control in the Aquarium.” The Tropical Tank. 2008. 13 April 2008
<http://www.thetropicaltank.co.uk>
Feldkamp, Susan. Modern Biology. Austin, Texas.: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2000.
Seyffarth, Keith. Dealing with Algae. 2007. 22 July 2007.
<http://www.firsttankguide.net/algae.php>
Wikimedia Foundation Inc, 2008. Wikipedia. 13 Apr. 2008.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algae>
Hauter, Stan & Debbie. “Algae- The Chlorophyta Phylum.” About.com 2008. May 4, 2008
<http://saltaquarium.about.com/library/weekly/aa012201.htm>
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