Abstract:Together with the rapid industrialization of the world, urbanization is also uncontrollably increasing. Such an increase in urbanization exerts the greatest pressure on natural resources, obligating people to live in intense structural spaces and increasing the need for green spaces in cities. Because of the expensive costs of horizontal surfaces being "green", urban places are faced with serious green-infrastructure problems. In recent years, alternatives have been searched for to eliminate such deficiencies. These alternatives, such as rain gardens, green walls (GWs), ecological designs, and green roofs, are commonly included in urban landscape designs. Besides rocky or steep-slope natural green walls (NGWs), natural green covers over buildings, walls, and so forth, structural members are also encountered in urban or rural places. On the other hand, artificial green walls (AGWs) have recently been used as a significant component of urban design. Although the AGWs are able to address various functional needs, they have not yet gained the desired popularity because of construction costs, static loads, constructional damages, and maintenance costs. In addition, such sites are largely left to exotic species with limited ecological requirements; these species are far from meeting ecological functions and resistance to extreme conditions. This study was conducted for a benchmarking assessment of artificial and natural green walls (A&NGWs) with a high potential in urban landscape design not only for esthetics, but also for ecological and economical purposes. Plant species, initial establishment, maintenance costs, and some other parameters of selected GWs were assessed. The study was considered as pioneering research for low-cost minimum-maintenance AGWs to be included in urban landscape designs. It was concluded, on the basis of the present findings, that the GW systems established with natural plant species, rock, and other materials already existing in natural landscapes could be constructed at fairly low costs, and such wall systems could have great ecological contributions.

Türkiye bitki çeĢitliliği açısından oldukça zengin bir doğal bitki örtüsüne sahiptir. Yüksek çeĢitlilikteki doğal bitki örtüsü içerisinde yer alan birçok ağaç, çalı ve otsu karaktere sahip bitki türleri bulunmaktadır. Doğal bitki türleri bulundukları coğrafyada kullanıldıklarında yöre koĢullarına en iyi adapte olabilen türler olmaktadırlar. Peyzaj mimarlığı uygulamalarında bakım maliyetlerinin azaltılması, sağlıklı bir bitki dokusu sağlanması, yerel çevreye uyum, çevre kalitesinin iyileĢtirilmesi gibi nedenlerle doğal türlerin kullanılması büyük önem taĢımaktadır. Türkiye'de özellikle doğal kaynak yönetimleri açısından yaĢam birliktelikleri son derece önem kazanmaya baĢlamıĢtır. Özellikle Batı Karadeniz bölgesi gerek içermiĢ olduğu tür zenginliği ve gerekse de yaĢam birliktelikleri çeĢitliliği ile dikkat çekmektedir. Bu çalıĢmada Düzce Kent Merkezi çevresinde envanteri çıkarılmıĢ olan endemik bitki türleri mevsimsel olarak gözlemlenmiĢ ve bu bitkilerin estetik ve fonksiyonel yönden kentsel alanlarda yapılacak olan peyzaj tasarımlarında değerlendirilme olanakları saptanmıĢtır.

Residential gardens serve as vital urban green spaces, offering sanctuaries for urban biodiversity. Our study aimed to investigate the impact of urbanization on the floral diversity of residential gardens in the coastal city of Rize. We classified plant species into native, non-native, and cultivated natural taxa and examined diversity patterns among species with distinct dispersal abilities. Our findings revealed a high frequency of non-native taxa in residential gardens, representing the predominant plant structures. Across 53 sample plots encompassing 150 residential gardens, we recorded 616 species from 120 families. Herbaceous plants accounted for the majority, comprising 74.4% of the total. The Asteraceae family emerged as the most frequently encountered, with 58 different taxa. Commelina communis L. was the most common native plant, while Camellia sinensis L. represented nonnative species, and Brassica oleracea L. var. viridis stood as the cultivated natural taxon. The diversity analyses were elucidated through the utilization of Shannon and Simpson's indices, while the regression analysis examined its variation in relation to the degree of urbanization. Our study exhibited various patterns of plant diversity across different levels of urbanization in the coastal city of Rize. We observed a positive relationship between the degree of urbanization and the diversity of woody plant species. While urbanization generally leads to a decrease in the abundance of herbaceous plant species, it exhibits different patterns in different sections. Through our investigation of the relationship between urbanization and plant diversity in residential gardens, we have gained valuable insights that can guide the development of effective strategies to conserve and sustain this critical biodiversity within urban environments.