A Garden Space Built for Sharing
Sarah Dobec is the Carrot Green Roof Coordinator
We check in with Sarah Dobec, the co-ordinator of the Carrot Green Roof, an inspiring rooftop garden that we visited for the first time earlier this year.
Dobec explains that this unique community space was originally imagined by architects and landscapers—and also by artists and community members.
Of the approximately 8,000 square feet on the rooftop, approximately 2,000 square feet is used to grow food. There is also a meadow garden, bee hives, and a low-growing area with sedums.
This year, because of the pandemic, more space is devoted to growing food.
A Community Space
The community space on the roof, which includes tables, chairs, and a food preparation area, is used to bring people together. Dobec says that the space is rented out for private functions—and is provided for free for those sharing knowledge that fits in with the values of the Carrot Green Roof.
“The space was built to bring people together.”
The programming in the community space is different every year. Dobec recalls one year when a group performed a play on the roof, using the garden space all around the community space in which to perform.
“They used the whole garden space to have a play.”
Connecting Food and Community
“This past Friday we harvested 34 pounds of food.”
The 34 pounds of food harvest this past Friday went to a nearby market.
The Carrot Green Roof has partnered with Building Roots, a social venture with a focus on providing access to fresh food.
Building Roots sells the harvest in pay-what-you-can baskets at Toronto’s Moss Park Market. “Everything that we harvest off our roof goes to them,” she says.
Challenges of Rooftop Growing
Weight is an important consideration for a rooftop garden. Because of that, many parts of the garden have only 4” of soil.
Dobec says that she didn’t hold out much hope this spring for the cabbages, planted in a mere 6” of soil. But they’ve done extremely well.
