Let's climb to the top of a Missoula roof. From there you can watch the comings and goings of a busy city. It's not a place you'd expect a farmer to be checking his crops. But this rooftop is blooming.

This condominium complex doesn't have much space for a traditional lawn. It's a sleek, urbane building stretching skyward. Owner Eric Hefty loves the plants growing on the decks high above town.

Hefty says, " it's just a great environment. You can get away from everything and the noise doesn't bother you."

The plants are sedums. They are hearty, drought tolerant and succulent. Farmer Nate Lengacher installed them on the roof last fall.

The plants are in the latter stages of their most spectacular bloom. But they're still striking. They're creating a "living roof."

Lengacher says the "green" roof creates elevated habitat. He says it attracts birds and honey bees. On his farm, Lengacher grows his sedums in soil over a thin, geo-textile mat.

They are rolled up and installed on the roof over several specialized layers. Lengacher says they reduce stormwater runoff and reduce heating and cooling costs.

Hefty says, in this mid day July heat, it's 20 to 30 degrees cooler. Hefty is a well known Missoula architect.

Father Jim Hogan lives in the complex. He says the rooftop is a great place to have friends over. He also likes it because it's a quiet place where he can do his daily meditation.

Lengacher contracts with a national green roof company. He supplies the Northern Rockies, Great Plains region. He depends on the building industry. He says it's been slow.

"We're holding steady," he says. But he says, he has no plans to "quit his day job. " Right now he says it's a nice hobby business. He hopes one day it will become more than that.