Canada: Montreal rooftops transformed into vineyards with urban wine project
Vignes en Ville project now operates four rooftop gardens across the city
By Marilla Steuter-Martin
CBC News
Jul 26, 2020
Excerpt:
Lemieux told CBC’s Let’s Go that some research shows crushed glass might even work better than sand in the growing of grapes because it reflects sunlight.
“Vines were the ideal candidate for this kind of experiment,” she said.
She said the project is also a green initiative.
“Sand is non-renewable resource, so we wanted to find a solution for this.”
The Vignes en Ville project has expanded in recent years after the SAQ came on board as a sponsor.
Now there are four rooftop vineyards across the city, at the Palais des Congrès, the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie du Québec, the Ubisoft building and a new one above the Centre Agricole in Ahuntsic-Cartierville.
In all, Lemieux said there are 545 plants, some of which are now ready to be harvested.
Lemieux, who has both a background in green energy and in wine import/export, was inspired by a commercial rooftop wine operation she visited in Brooklyn.
