Urban rooftops are underutilized spaces to grow food. To help increase food production and improve regional food and nutritional security, UMD has partnered with Up Top Acres - a DC based farm operator - to develop best practices for integrating rooftop farming with green roof technology. Maryland researchers Dr. John Lea-Cox and Dr. Andrew Ristvey are spearheading the University of Maryland Urban Farm Integrated Research and Extension Program: Green Roof Food Production. They are overseeing research and implementing new technologies to monitor soil moisture, develop agricultural substrates for rooftops, and mitigate storm water runoff.
