Sustainable landscape architecture: implications of the Chinese philosophy of ‘‘unity of man with nature’’ and beyond

As the world population continues to grow and as global urbanization continues to unfold, our ecosystems and landscapes will be increasingly domesticated and designed. Developing and maintaining sustainable landscapes have become one of the most challenging and imperative tasks for scientists and stakeholders of all sorts. To accomplish this task, landscape ecology and landscape architecture can and must play a critical role. Landscape architects intentionally modify and create landscapes, and their imprints and influences are pervasive and profound, far beyond the physical limits of the designed landscapes. As an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary enterprise that integrates the science and art of studying and influencing the relationship between spatial pattern and ecological processes, the theory, methods, and applications of landscape ecology are directly relevant to sustainability. However, neither landscape ecology nor landscape architecture is likely to achieve its expected goal if they are not truly integrated to produce a sustainable landscape architecture. In this paper, we argue that the ancient Chinese philosophy of “unity of man with nature” and its associated design principles can provide useful guidelines for this integration as well as for the development of a sustainable landscape architecture. We discuss several principles and models of Chinese landscape architecture, including “unity of man with nature” philosophy, “peach blossom spring” ideal, “world-in-a-pot” model, and Feng–Shui theory, and their implications for developing a sustainable landscape architecture. Although differences in the philosophical roots and design traditions between Eastern and Western landscape architecture will continue to exist, interactions and integration between the two will continue to increase under the theme of sustainability. To promote the translation of scientific knowledge into practice, we urge landscape ecologists to work proactively with landscape architects to integrate pattern–process–scale and holistic perspectives into the design and planning of landscapes.     

Accounting for spatial autocorrelation improves the estimation of climate,physical environment and vegetation’s effects on boreal forest’s burn rates

Context

Wildfires play a crucial role in maintaining ecological and societal functions of North American boreal forests. Because of their contagious way of spreading, using statistical methods dealing with spatial autocorrelation has become a major challenge in fire studies analyzing how environmental factors affect their spatial variability.

Objectives

We aimed to demonstrate the performance of a spatially explicit method accounting for spatial autocorrelation in burn rates modelling, and to use this method to determine the relative contribution of climate, physical environment and vegetation to the spatial variability of burn rates between 1972 and 2015.

Methods

Using a 482,000 km² territory located in the coniferous boreal forest of eastern Canada, we built and compared burn rates models with and without accounting for spatial autocorrelation. The relative contribution of climate, physical environment and vegetation to the burn rates variability was identified with variance partitioning.

Results

Accounting for spatial autocorrelation improved the models’ performance by a factor of 1.5. Our method allowed the unadulterated extraction of the contribution of climate, physical environment and vegetation to the spatial variability of burn rates. This contribution was similar for the three groups of factors. The spatial autocorrelation extent was linked to the fire size distribution.

Conclusions

Accounting for spatial autocorrelation can highly improve models and avoids biased results and misinterpretation. Considering climate, physical environment and vegetation altogether is essential, especially when attempting to predict future area burned. In addition to the direct effect of climate, changes in vegetation could have important impacts on future burn rates.

     

Diversity and structure in California’s urban forest: What over six million data points tell us about one of the world's largest urban forests

Urban street trees provide many benefits to surrounding communities, but our ability to assess such benefits relies on the availability of high-quality urban tree data. While these data are numerous, they are not available in an easily accessible, centralized place. To fill this gap, we aggregated public and private data into a single, comprehensive inventory of urban trees in California called the California Urban Forest (CUF) Inventory. These data are offered to the public (aggregated to ZIP code) via an online data portal, which at the time of publication contained over 6.6 million urban tree records. In this study, we first describe the assembly and utility of the inventory. Then, we conduct the most comprehensive assessment of the diversity and structure of California’s urban forest to date at statewide, regional, and local spatial scales. These analyses demonstrate that California’s urban forests are highly diverse and among the most diverse urban forests in the world. We present a new and intuitive metric of species diversity, the top diversity or TD-50 index, which represents the cumulative number of species accounting for the top 50 % abundance of trees in an urban forest. We used species abundance data from 81 well-inventoried cities to demonstrate that the TD-50 index was a robust metric of diversity and a good predictor of comprehensive metrics like the Shannon Index. We also found that small-statured trees, such as crape myrtles (Lagerstroemia cv.) dominate California’s urban forests. This aggregated inventory of one of the world's largest urban forests provides the data necessary to assess the structure, diversity, and value of California’s urban forests at multiple spatial scales. The inventory’s presentation to the public and the information that can be gained from its analysis can be a model for urban forest management worldwide.     

A landscape vulnerability framework for identifying integrated conservation and adaptation pathways to climate change: the case of Madagascar’s spiny forest

Context

Integrated conservation decision-making frameworks that help to design or adjust practices that are cognisant of environmental change and adaptation are urgently needed.

Objective

We demonstrate how a landscape vulnerability framework combining sensitivity, adaptive capacity, and exposure to climate change framed along two main axes of concern can help to identify potential strategies for conservation and adaptation decision-making, using a landscape in Madagascar’s spiny forest as a case-study.

Methods

To apply such a vulnerability landscape assessment, we inferred the sensitivity of habitats using temporal and spatial botanical data-sets, including the use of fossil pollen data and vegetation surveys. For understanding adaptive capacity, we analysed existing spatial maps (reflecting anthropogenic stressors) showing the degree of habitat connectivity, matrix quality and protected area coverage for the different habitats in the landscape. Lastly, for understanding exposures, we used climate change predictions in Madagascar, together with a digital elevation model.

Results

The fossil pollen data showed how sensitive arid-adapted species were to past climate changes, especially the conditions between 1000 and 500 cal yr BP. The spatial analysis then helped locate habitats on the two-dimensional axes of concern integrating sensitivity, adaptive capacity and climate change exposure. By identifying resistant, resilient, susceptible, and sensitive habitats to climate change in the landscape under study, we identify very different approaches to integrate conservation and adaptation strategies in contrasting habitats.

Conclusion

This framework, illustrated through a case study, provides easy guidance for identifying potential integrated conservation and adaptation strategies, taking into account aspects of climate vulnerability and conservation capacity.

     

Sidewalks,trees and shade matter: A visual landscape assessment approach to understanding people’s preferences for walking

IntroductionPublic health professionals and urban designers consider neighborhood sidewalks as a vehicle for promoting outdoor physical activity. The design of streetscape and available greenness may also influence walking behaviors and physical activity more generally.MethodData collection included a visual landscape assessment (VLA) survey, followed by focus groups to evaluate streetscape features that influence participants’ preferences for and choice of walking routes. With the considerations of equity in access to the environmental amenities, the study was conducted in marginalized communities. Sixty-nine people from low-income neighborhoods in Denver, CO participated in this study. Data were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively, using multilevel statistical models.ResultsMore shade and trees, higher levels of maintenance, and the presence of a buffer between the street and sidewalk increase the likelihood of intuitively choosing a street for walking. The availability of natural surveillance, the presence of an open view, and the presence of attractive buildings increase the likelihood of cognitively choosing a street for walking.ConclusionPeople‘s preferences for and choice of walking routes, which include desired shade and walkability, should be considered in neighborhood planning to promote walkable environments.     

Influences of buildings on urban heat island based on 3D landscape metrics: an investigation of China’s 30 megacities at micro grid-cell scale and macro city scale

Landscape Ecology - The building landscape greatly affects the urban heat island (UHI), especially in three-dimensional (3D) space, by changing the energy flow between the land surface, the...     

The Effect of Conditions of Storage on the Respiration of Apples: III. The Effect of Modulation of Temperature on the Respiration of Cox’s Orange Pippin Apples,and on the Extent of Low Temperature Injury

When apples which develop low temperature breakdown (LTB) at 32° F. are moved from 32° F. to 65° F. for 3 to 5 days at about the 7th to 8th week of storage, they subsequently develop within a given period of storage less LTB than apples kept at 32° F. continuously.

The respiration of apples susceptible to LTB increases steadily during storage at 32° F. If these apples are warmed to 65° F. during the period of exposure to 32° F., the subsequent rate of respiration at 32° F. is lower than before warming, and continues at a lower rate than for apples kept at 32° F. continuously.

If the apples are moved to 38° F., without an intermediate treatment at 65° F., the rate of respiration is higher than for apples at 38° F. continuously, and this higher rate persists.

If there is an intermediate wanning period at 65° F., the respiration of apples moved from 32° to 38° F. is of the same order as that for apples kept at 38° F. continuously.

The respiratory quotient of apples at 32° F. or at 38° F., which is indicative of the type of respiratory activity, is typical for the temperature at which it is measured, and is not affected by the warming treatment. The effects of wanning on both the incidence of LTB and respiration are similar for apples stored in air and in 2% oxygen: 98% nitrogen.     

Investigations on Chlorosis of Fruit Trees.: II.—The Composition of Leaves,Bark and Wood of Current Season’s Shoots in Cases of Lime-Induced Chlorosis.

Summary

Radish (Raphanus sativus) is an important crucifer vegetative crop in Japan. We studied the morphological and anatomical characteristics of radish roots over a 6-week period using three radish cultivars with three different root shapes: long-type (Lt), round-type (Rt), and thin-type (Tt). We found that significant differences in the thickness of the roots first appeared 4 weeks after sowing. In Lt and Rt plants, the roots thickened rapidly, especially in the middle section that is composed of the lower part of the hypocotyl and the upper part of the taproot. The taproot increased in length in Lt plants, but failed to elongate in Rt plants. In Tt plants, the roots showed much smaller increases in mean diameter and length. Transverse sections through the taproots showed significant differences, both in cell number and in cell size 4 weeks after sowing. Lt and Rt plants contained more cells in the secondary xylem and phloem than Tt plants, and cell expansion was also greater in the storage roots of the Lt and Rt cultivars. These results will contribute to a better understanding of the development of radish roots of different shape.