Above the reading roomA library rain garden, explained

A little rain.
A living roof.

Up here, the library collects more than books. Plants, soil and a hidden reservoir give rain a place to pause.

A small meadowLeaves slow the first drops.Growing mediumRoots, pores and stored moisture.Water reservoirTemporary room for the rain.Library roofProtected by a waterproof layer.
A roof, opened up.
Section is diagrammatic; layers are exaggerated.

Send a shower over it.

This small model begins dry and has room for 20 liters of rain per square meter.

Choose a shower depth to see how much stays and how much leaves.

Pause the runoff.

Water gathers in the growing medium and drainage layer before the excess leaves the roof. Holding some rain back can ease a sudden rush into drains.

Give the roots a drink.

Plants use stored moisture between showers. Water also returns to the air through evaporation and transpiration.

Make room for life.

A varied planting palette offers more than a green view from the reading room: places to feed, shelter and move through.