Urban vegetation plays a crucial role in meeting the challenges posed by rapid urbanization and climate change. The presence of plants and green spaces in urban areas provides a variety of environmental, social, and economic benefits. Understanding how users perceive ornamental plants in public green spaces and what their preferences are for certain vegetation elements is extremely important for planning and designing functional and aesthetically interesting urban landscapes. Although landscape experts sometimes use their creativity to create new trends, it is important not to ignore the attitudes and preferences of the public, who sometimes have a different opinion from that of the experts. The aim of the study was to determine the perceptions and preferences of the public and landscape experts for different vegetation elements and the differences in attitudes between these two groups. The study was conducted in Croatia in April 2012 using an online survey (n = 348). The results showed that trees were the most preferred vegetation element and that the public preferred flower beds and lawns to a greater extent than the professionals. All respondents perceived vegetation elements as volumes (trees, shrubs, and hedges) and plains (flower beds and lawns). In addition, respondents perceived two basic types of flower beds according to the features that characterize them: conventional and sustainable. The results show that users perceive the functional and spatial characteristics of the different vegetation elements, which is very important for the design of functional and sustainable urban green spaces.

The green infrastructure of Zagreb’s Lower Town is made up of row-planted trees and green spaces within blocks of buildings. All schools are surrounded by green spaces that have a positive impact on the environment. Although most green spaces contribute to improving the quality of life, they also contain toxic and allergenic species which are potentially hazardous, particularly to children. This paper aims to make an inventory of plant species in the environment of primary schools in Zagreb’s Lower Town district, and to determine the presence of toxic and allergenic species. The field research was conducted from March to the end of May 2021 at 7 primary school locations. 13 either annual or biennial plant families were catalogued. In total, 34 species of herbaceous perennials and geophytes, and 36 species of trees from 17 plant families were listed. A total of 38 species of shrubs and climbers were found. Also, a total of 35 poisonous and 28 allergenic plant taxa are planted in the green spaces surrounding primary schools. The most common poisonous species found are Hedera helix and Taxus baccata , and Ilex aquifolium , a highly poisonous species, was also found. No moderately poisonous species have been found at all. As far as allergenic species are concerned, school environments are dominated by those that produce low and moderate levels of pollen concentration in the air. Species that produce high levels of pollen concentration (e.g., Betula pendula , Robinia pseudoacacia , etc.) are the least represented ones, while species that produce a very high concentration of pollen have not been recorded in any of the localities.

Green spaces are becoming increasingly important for cities due to the growing pressures of urbanization and climate change. Along with trees, shrubs, and lawns, flower beds are an important part of urban green spaces. The majority of flower beds in public spaces consist of annual and biennial flower species. Such seasonal flower beds feature eye-catching colors but require significant effort to maintain and manage. Compared to these conventional flower beds, those with herbaceous perennials are more ecologically effective and less costly to maintain, and therefore more sustainable. The aim of this research was to analyze flower beds with perennials in the public green spaces of the city of Zagreb and to develop a tool based on predefined criteria and indicators to evaluate the sustainability of flower beds. In the context of the research, sustainability meant appropriate selection of flower species based on environmental conditions (temperature, light, precipitation), species diversity, greater ground cover and extensiveness of maintenance. The research results showed that there were 327 flower beds with perennials planted in the ground. The constructed Flower Bed Sustainability Index (FBSI) showed that the majority of these perennial beds (56.3%) had a conventional character, as only 28.1% of the beds had a completely correct species selection. This result indicates that the use of perennials does not necessarily guarantee the sustainability of flower beds, since, as in the case of flower beds with seasonal flowers, it depends, among other things, on the correct selection of species adapted to local environmental conditions. The FBSI is shown to be a suitable tool for assessing the degree of sustainability of a flower bed and could be a useful tool in landscape design and management of such types of green spaces.

Vrste roda Helleborus se u ukrasnoj hortikulturi koriste kao vrtne biljke, lončanice za primjenu u vanjskom prostoru, kao vrste za uređenje interijera, a sve se više traže kao cvjetna vrsta za rez tijekom zime. Cilj ovog rada je opisati osnovne morfološke značajke i uvjete uzgoja vrsta roda Helleborus te dati pregled asortimana vrsta i kultivara kasnojesenske i zimske cvatnje. Pregledom literature utvrđeno je da Helleborus niger L., crni kukurijek, na tržištu postaje sve traženija ukrasna biljka, a prate ga i križanci između vrste H. orientalis i drugih vrsta ovoga roda (H. × hybridus). Iako tržišno slabo zastupljene u ukrasnoj hortikulturi se primjenjuju i druge vrste (H. viridis, H. foetidus, H. purpurascens, H. tibethanus, H. vesicarius te H. multifidus) te sve veći broj kultivara. Za cvatnju početkom zime, posebno u vrijeme Božića, najpoznatija je vrsta Helleborus niger L., a sve se više komercijaliziraju i međuvrsni križanci. Pri tome osobit značaj imaju križanci između vrsta H. niger, H. argutifolius Viv. i H. lividus Aiton. Razmnožavanje je moguće sjemenom, dijeljenjem te kulturom tkiva. Uzgaja se u uzgojnim posudama 12- 14 cm promjera u koje se sadi od 50. do 18. tjedna. Potreban mu je supstrat pH od 5,8 do 6,0, ne podnosi visoku razinu soli u tlu, a za prodaju početkom zime uzgaja se u zaštićenim prostorima od sredine listopada. Osjetljiv je na visoku vlagu, koja uz visoke temperature potencira pojavu bolesti (Fusarium, Pythium i Phytophtora).

Dendroflora grada Zagreba u 19. stoljeću – na primjeru parkova zagrebačke Zelene potkove, parkova Ribnjak, Maksimir i Tuškanac ~ Dendroflora of the city of Zagreb in the 19th century – on the example of Zagreb's Green Horseshoe, Ribnjak, Maksimir and Tuškanac parks

Tržište ukrasnog bilja oskudijeva ponudom cvatućih vrsta tijekom kasno jesenskog i zimskog razdoblja, a potražnja raste u vrijeme božićnih blagdana. Uzgoj geofita otpornih na hladnoću koji su tijekom ljeta proveli prividno mirovanje i formirali cvjet...