The negative effects of urbanization such as urban overheating, pollution, high population density and so on are being experienced by city inhabitants more than ever, thus motivating a high number of researchers to find viable solutions to mitigate these effects. The present paper aims to identify an assortment of ornamental plants appropriate to be successfully used in various facade covering systems for buildings located in Eastern European countries. For this purpose, throughout a vegetation season, the project’s team thoroughly monitored the percentage of survival, the coverage degree, and the behavior (biometric aspects and visual quality) of ten flowering species planted vertically and being oriented towards all four cardinal points. At the same time, the team conducted a thorough monitoring of some parameters of the soil (pH, humidity, and temperature) and of the outside environment (light intensity and temperature). Two experimental structures were built, insulated on the inside and covered at the top with thermal insulating panels, to simulate the same conditions of an insulated and unheated construction. The monitoring results showed that Heuchera x hybrida ‘Fire Alarm’, Heuchera x hybrida ‘Marmalade’ and Festuca galuca had a healthy appearance throughout the year, regardless of the cardinal orientation while providing a good coverage of the vertical surface.

(1) Background: The expansion that most cities have been showing for more than half a century has also brought with it an increase in the density of buildings, most of the time at the expense of green areas. This has led to negative effects, such as overpopulation of cities, rising urban temperatures, pollution of water, air, soil, and others, affecting daily urban life. As a result, specialists from different fields form multidisciplinary teams are looking for solutions to counteract these effects. The subject of visible facades has registered an increased interest among researchers in recent years because they can represent a viable solution that can contribute to increasing the degree of urban comfort. However, for such a system to be effective, it is necessary that the plants used grow and develop harmoniously and ensure the best possible coverage of the facade. The aim of this research is to find an adequate mathematical model that can predict, with a high degree of accuracy, the percentage of plant coverage of a green wall system, which is positioned in the city of Iasi, northeastern Romania. (2) Methods: The models used for this purpose were a multiple linear regression model (MLR) and a model based on a feed-forward artificial neural network (ANN). Four independent variables (soil temperature, soil moisture, week of the year, and cardinal wall orientation) and the interaction between two variables (soil temperature and week of the year) were used for the multiple linear regression model. Artificial neural networks were also trained to estimate the percentage of plant coverage in the analyzed system, and the network with the best mean squared error performance was chosen in doing predictions. For both MLR and ANN models, we constructed confidence intervals for the degree of plant coverage of the system (PCP) for a set of observed values. In the case of the ANN model, the confidence interval was derived via the bootstrap method, which is a resampling with replacement technique used to generate new samples from the original dataset. To the best of our knowledge, the derivation of confidence intervals using a combination of neural networks with the bootstrap method has not been used before, at least for predictions in horticulture. (3) Results: The ANN employed here consisted of one input layer with four neurons, one hidden layer with five neurons, and one output layer with one neuron. The comparison showed that the confidence interval obtained using ANN has a shorter length (and thus it is more accurate) than that obtained by the multiple linear regression model. The choice of the experimental module façade had a significant influence (of magnitude 1.9073) on the plant coverage percentage. An increase of one unit in soil humidity will determine an increase of almost 5.1% in plant coverage percentage, and an increase of 1 °C in soil temperature will determine a decrease of almost 1.21% in plant coverage percentage. The choice of the experimental module façade had a significant influence (of magnitude 1.9073) on the plant coverage percentage. (4) Conclusions: Although both methods showed to be useful in making predictions, the ANN method showed better predictive capabilities, at least when the performance is measured by the mean squared error. This fact may be useful when predicting the percentage of plant coverage of a green wall system with a higher degree of accuracy, in the case of organizing outdoor exhibitions or other similar projects.

A highly popular and well-known flowering species for the unmistakable shape of its velvety and beautifully coloured flowers, Antirrhinum majus is often used in garden decor due to its long flowering period, ease of cultivation and low maintenance during the growing season. This study aims to investigate the behaviour of a dwarf variety of the Antirrhinum majus species grown in both vertical systems for green façades and also in a control field under the climate conditions in the north-eastern region of Romania. The façades of the vertical structure were been oriented towards a cardinal point, each of them having four equal layers arranged on height. The study found that this dwarf variety adapts very well to vertical systems, maintaining its ornamental features for a long time. During the experiment, observations included the diameter, height and number of flowers per plant in the control variant and on each side of the experimental structure. The highest values in July and August for plant diameter, plant height and the number of flowers were shown for the western facade and the lowest for the control variant. Instead, the control variant in September held the first position showing the highest means for all three monitored parameters and the lowest were for the southern orientation.

Ornamental vegetable gardens have many benefits. They are aesthetic, educational, ecological, economical, sanitary, and are a source of fresh food. Small allotments in urban and peri-urban areas do not allow the implementation of utilitarian gardens. Thus, ornamental vegetable gardens are the best choice. Raised beds can be used to enhance the decorative effect of the entire vegetable garden. This type of construction presents, in turn, several advantages both for the user and crop: reduced effort for maintenance work, early heating of the substrate, loose substrate, reduced volume of weeds, efficient use of space for plants, etc. Establishing ornamental vegetable gardens on raised beds is easily achieved using geometric modules, as they can be adapted to various designs. This paper presents several design options for a decorative vegetable garden on private properties. The case studies presented showed different methods of using modular raised beds depending on the property's area, the owner's wishes, and the desired area to be planted. Also, depending on the results obtained from the experimental batch, three other variations of modular layouts with different purposes were proposed: focal point, physically closed but visually open space, and relaxation space.

This study evaluated the effects of raised beds on crop production and quality in home gardens. The crops were grown using optimal management techniques and crop rotation principles based on organic farming. Three experimental versions were compared: V1 with 40-centimetre-high raised beds, V2 with 20-centimetre-high raised beds, and V3 with ground-level beds as the control. The results showed consistent dry weight and moisture content across all three versions for most vegetable varieties. The sweet pepper ‘Barbara’ stood out significantly, as V3 had the highest dry weight percentage (10.28%) and V2 had the highest moisture content percentage (93.40%). Nutrient analysis revealed no significant differences in lipid, ash, protein, nitrogen, or caloric value among the different versions of most vegetables. However, version V3 of the tomato ‘Tigerella’ showed the highest crude fibre content. Variations were observed in lycopene, ß-carotene, and calcium content among different versions of specific vegetables. Anti-nutritive compounds and average yield varied among the experimental versions for certain plant species. These findings have implications for dietary choices and can guide sustainable food production. It is recommended to consider raised beds, particularly V3, for cultivating sweet pepper ‘Barbara’, and further research is encouraged to explore the potential health benefits of version V3 of tomato ‘Tigerella’. These insights provide valuable vegetable science and nutrition information and can guide agricultural practices.