Beyond aesthetics, the contemporary landscaping intends to provide other benefits for humans and environment, especially related to the environmental quality of urban spaces and conservation of the species. A trend in this direction is the reduction in the use of exotic plants in their designs, since, over time, they can become agents of replacement of native flora, as it has occurred in Rio Grande do Sul with many species introduced by settlers. However, the use of exotic species is unjustifiable, because the flora diversity of the Bioma Pampa offers many native species with appropriate features to the ornamental use. The commercial cultivation and the implantation of native species in landscaped areas constitute innovations for plant nurseries and landscapers and can provide a positive reduction in extractivism, contributing to dissemination, exploitation and preservation of native flora, and also decrease the impact of chemical products on environment. So, this work intends to identify native species of Bioma Pampa with features and uses similar to the most used exotic species at Brazilian landscaping. The species were selected from consulting books about native plants of Bioma Pampa and plants used at Brazilian landscaping, considering the similarity on habit and architecture, as well as characteristics of leafs, flowers and/or fruits and environmental conditions of occurrence and cultivation. There were identified 34 native species able to properly replace exotic species commonly used. The results show that many native species of Bioma Pampa have interesting ornamental features to landscape gardening, allowing them to replace exotic species that are traditionally cultivated.

Monteverdia ilicifolia, conhecida popularmente como espinheira-santa, é uma planta medicinal nativa do Brasil utilizada no tratamento de gastrites e úlceras gástricas.  Este trabalho teve como objetivos avaliar a morfologia e biologia floral, caracterizar o sistema reprodutivo e descrever a fenologia reprodutiva de M. ilicifolia. Foram feitas análises de morfologia e biologia floral em plantas de espinheira-santa de um Banco Ativo de Germoplasma. O sistema reprodutivo foi avaliado por meio de testes de autopolinização, apomixia, polinização cruzada, polinização natural e geitonogamia. As fenofases reprodutivas foram acompanhadas durante dois anos e correlacionadas a variáveis climáticas. Todas as flores avaliadas são morfologicamente hermafroditas, no entanto foram encontrados três tipos florais quanto a expressão sexual: flores funcionalmente femininas, flores funcionalmente masculinas e flores hermafroditas. As flores funcionalmente masculinas e funcionalmente femininas ocorrem em diferentes plantas, caracterizando um processo evolutivo para a dioicia nessa espécie. Os tipos florais podem ser diferenciados comparando o comprimento estames com o comprimento do estilete, posição dos estames, a coloração das anteras e a quantidade de pólen em cada flor. A espécie apresentou sistema reprodutivo preferencialmente alógamo. O período reprodutivo ocorreu de junho até fevereiro, sendo que as fenofases reprodutivas estão correlacionadas com a temperatura e o comprimento do dia.

Espinheira-santa (Monteverdia ilicifolia) is a native plant of Brazil widely used in folk medicine because it has several therapeutic properties. Regarding the pollination biology and seed dispersal of this species, there is no information available in the literature. In this study, pollinators and dispersers of M. ilicifolia were observed and identified, as well as the behavior of these biological agents during the period of flowering and fruiting. In addition, the frequency of pollinator visits and the efficiency of the seed disperser were recorded. It was verified that in espinheira-santa, pollination is carried out by diptera and by hymenoptera. Among the main groups of pollinators are the flies, being Lucilia eximia, Limnophora sp. and Eristalis sp. the most frequent, and the wasps, in which Brachygastra mellifica, Polistes canadensis, Mischocyttarus sp. and one species of the Tiphiidae family were the most frequent. Eight species of birds consumed diaspores (arils with seeds), acting as dispersers of this species. However, the following birds were more efficient in the dispersion of seeds: Tangara sayaca, Elaenia sp. and Pipraeidea bonariensis. In this sense, M. ilicifolia is a species that has entomophilous pollination and ornithochoric dispersion.

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