When Sacha and his team at GGL Landscaping & Gardening were asked to renovate a 100 square metre rooftop garden, they knew they had their work cut out.
There were many unique challenges to this project, but the results speak for themselves.
Hi Sacha, thank you for sharing this project with us. Firstly - what was the client brief? Why did they want a rooftop garden?
“The client’s brief was to renovate and revitalise their existing rooftop garden. Over time, the space had become overgrown and lacked structure and usability.
Originally, it was a very simple garden area with no defined paths, no vegetable planter boxes, and no water feature — essentially just an unstructured planting area over the roof of their home.
They wanted to transform it into a more functional and inviting outdoor space, with clear layout, purpose, and design elements that would enhance both usability and visual appeal.”
This was a very successful collaboration between you and the designer Sculpt Garden Design, tell us a bit about how that collab process.
“This was a great collaborative process between our team GGL Landscaping & Gardening and Sculpt Garden Design.
Firstly, as we normally do, we organised an initial meeting with the client to fully understand their needs — how they wanted to use the space, their personal taste, preferred materials, and the types of plants they were drawn to. Gaining a clear understanding of their vision was essential before moving into the design phase.
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With that foundation in place, Claire from Sculpt Garden Design developed a detailed proposal that responded to the client’s brief. We then reviewed the design together as a team and presented it to the client. Through this collaborative refinement process, the final concept was approved.
From there, GGL brought the design to life on site, ensuring the finished space reflected both the designer’s vision and the client’s expectations.”
What are some of the particular technical challenges involved in a rooftop garden?
“One of the main technical challenges of a rooftop garden is access and on this project, it was definitely the most significant factor. The existing garden was heavily overgrown, so the first step involved removing all unwanted plants and approximately 4 cubic metres of old soil to allow for healthy new planting in fresh growing medium.
In addition to the removal process, we then needed to transport a substantial volume of materials up to roof level. This included corten steel pots and edging, trellis, 4.5m pine sleepers, a water feature, a canopied vegetable planter, and approximately 20 cubic metres of bulk materials such as basecourse, decorative pebbles, garden mix, and mulch.
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The garden is complete and the clients are delighted with the results! What benefits do you think it adds to the property?
“The garden is now complete and the clients are absolutely delighted with the result. It has added significant value to the property not only financially, but also in terms of lifestyle.
The new rooftop garden creates an additional outdoor entertaining area, expanding the usable living space of the home. It provides a private, functional environment where the owners can relax, host guests, and enjoy the views.
The inclusion of the vegetable planters also gives them the opportunity to grow their own food, adding a sustainable and personal element to the space.
Overall, it has transformed what was once an under-utilised area into a vibrant and purposeful extension of the home.”
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