Residential landscapes support human well-being and ecological functioning in urban ecosystems. Trees and native plants in yards and neighborhoods positively influence satisfaction, an important component of human well-being and quality of life. However, these patterns may not hold true in arid ecoregions, where the composition of desert vegetation contrasts the tall, broad-leafed trees of temperate

Hospital green spaces are important for the well-being and health of patients, especially in children’ hospitals, because children are usually more sensitive than other groups of the society. Therefore, knowledge of users’ preferences about the landscape design of the hospitals is important to maximize the benefits of green spaces and achieve the desired spaces. This research aimed to examine the views

Parks are important public resources that offer opportunities to be physically active and connect socially. However, parks are not well attended by adolescents, and limited research exists to inform optimal park design to increase adolescents’ park visits and support active and social park use. This study aimed to gain in-depth insights into park characteristics that are important for influencing park

Background Understanding which types of landscapes are attractive to tourists during forest walking and which factors affect tourists' viewing intentions, plays a significant role in the drafts by forest landscape planners and designers. Main purpose To clarify the spatial cognition characteristics and differences when tourists appreciation the forest landscape and explore the factors that affect tourists'

Cities provide a locus for sustainability: they will soon accommodate most of the world’s population, just as increasing environmental and climate emergencies and socio-economic inequalities constitute major challenges. The concept of urban green infrastructure (UGI) offers a greenspace planning approach based on a grounded set of principles to improve the environmental health and liveability of cities

This paper presents a summary of empirical evidence drawn from a literature review on the factors contributing to people using the pocket parks. Initial findings indicate that pocket parks play a significant role by providing access to nature for individuals living in urban areas. This paper provides an evidence-based approach to the usage and benefits of pocket parks by applying the SE-Model approach

Urban wildlife is an important component of biodiversity. Human-urban wildlife interaction has been changing, but public opinions, especially individualized opinions, are not being sufficiently incorporated into urban wildlife management decisions. This study aims to fill this gap by investigating people’s preference heterogeneity of browse lines, a unique tree landscape altered by wild deer (Cervus

Cities are home to an increasing number of people who depend on urban forests to provide ecosystem services such as temperature regulation, air quality improvement and storm water abatement. Climate change may challenge the capacity of urban forests to provide these services. Intensification of heat waves, droughts and strengthening storms could lead to tree die-offs. In Quebec City, work has suggested

Nowadays, food insecurity is intensifying in urban areas of Ethiopia, accompanied by a high food price. This paper aims to explore the capacity of farmlands (field crop areas and vegetable farmlands) to supply food and search for suitable locations for urban and peri-urban agriculture that are low in extent at the moment. Both the capacity assessment and the suitability analysis used overlay analysis

Driving on freeways is a daily activity across the world. Poor driving performance on freeways can cause severe injuries and deaths. However, few studies have examined whether and to what extent different types of freeway landscapes influence driving performance. A simulated driving task was designed to measure the impacts of six types of freeway landscape on 33 participants’ driving performance. Each

Fine monitoring of tree species is essential to supporting the urban forest management. Data acquired from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) not only have very high spatiotemporal resolution, but also contain the vertical structure of trees which is important in the fine recognition of vegetation types. However, the research of combining multi-dimensional features in classification is still very limited

Real estate premium associated with landscape amenities is a well-studied topic with a primary focus on housing prices. Presumably, the willingness-to-pay for landscape amenities should be very different between homeowners and tenants. Thus far, how landscape amenities affect residential rental prices is not well understood. This paper takes advantage of the big data of online housing advertisements

As the climate changes, green spaces of all types will be increasingly important in maintaining livable and biodiverse communities. A type of green space common to suburban communities in the United States is residential open space. Residential open spaces tend to be small and heavily managed and are frequently undervalued and understudied as ecological amenities. This study uses GIS analysis and spatial

As an increasing number of wildlife are colonizing urban areas, how to control human-wildlife interactions has been a pivotal challenge in wildlife management and urban planning alike. Close human-wildlife proximity and associated behaviors such as flight initiation distance (FID; the distance at which animals initiate escape from approaching humans) is one of many important ecological elements underlying

Soil temperature and moisture are not only two important factors in designing urban landscapes, but in dry cities with hot summers and cold winters, they are two essential factors for plants’ survival. Mulches and planting combinations are two important principles of xeriscaping or water-wise landscaping. We investigated the effects of water-wise planting combinations and mulch types on soil moisture

Urban green and open space are important components of achieving the goal of planning sustainable cities, by offering health benefits to urban dwellers and providing socio-economic and environmental benefits to society. Recent literature studied the usage of urban parks, however, few has addressed seasonal fluctuations of park visitor volume, let alone seasonal variations of home-park travel distances

The morphology of urban green infrastructure (UGI) will affect the quality of urban environment and the way people perceive. The three-dimensional morphological features of UGI have been proven to be the key factors to effect urban ecological environment, which have rarely been incorporated into the UGI morphology in the previous researches. In this paper, a systematic approach to develop a 3D spatiotemporal

Evidence suggests that surrounding greenness is associated with multiple health-related benefits, including better cognitive functioning. Underlying mechanisms of the relationship between exposure to natural environments and cognitive functioning have not been widely researched. This study aimed to analyse the relationship between surrounding greenness and memory performance, and to explore the potential

Climate change adaptation planning is of high urgency in cities due to expected climate change impacts. Ecosystem-based approaches to adaptation (EbAs) are considered highly efficient in enhancing sustainable resilience of cities; however, incorporation of EbA measures into the decision-making process has not been fully achieved at the individual city level. The study illustrates how to initiate strategical

In order to identify the reliability and validity of the different visual approaches in assessing landscape perception and preference, off-site surveys with photo elicitation and virtual reality and on-site surveys of urban green spaces were conducted under certain conditions across four seasons and with different selections of participants as an experimental design. Nonparametric tests (Kruskal-Wallis

Digital hemispherical photography (DHP) is widely used to measure the radiative environment and estimate sky view factors (SVF) in urban areas and leaf area index (LAI) in forests. However, a limitation is the difficulty to distinguish trees from buildings, or leaves from stems and branches. In this study, we collected and processed dual-wavelength photographs recording visible and near-infrared (NIR)

The scientific evaluation system of plants is an important premise in the design of healing landscapes (HLs) for improving the quality of life of the elderly. Based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), the weights of the HL evaluation indicators for the elderly were calculated, and the comprehensive values of 150 species of plants in northern China were evaluated using this model. The results showed

There has been limited research on understanding access to public green spaces in cities of the global South. In a study in Hyderabad, India, we interview visitors in four parks to understand their perceptions of and access to ecosystem services. Of these, two parks charge entry fees and two provide free entry or entry at minimal cost. Most users value the park as a recreational space, but are largely

Understanding preferences for urban green infrastructure (UGI) and the factors responsible for these are very important for adequate provision and effective management of these vital components of the urban environment. There are however very few studies that provide insight into residents’ preferences for UGI in sub-Saharan Africa. The aim of this study was to examine residents’ preferences for the

Urban expansion is the spreading process of urban construction land overcoming ecological resistance. In this paper, we introduced relative resistance factors on different source levels in the minimum cumulative resistance model (MCR), and considered the inherent constraints and epitaxial ecological resistance on town expansion. Then, we constructed an improved minimal cumulative resistance (IMCR)

Rapid urbanization has decreased opportunities for nature contact while increasing stressors from pollution, strenuous commutes, and sedentary work environments. With an additional 2.5 billion people expected to reside in cities by 2050, novel solutions are required to integrate urban natures. Urban parks and greenways provide opportunities for restorative nature experiences, but the benefits of small-scale

With the increased risk of extinction of woody species, there is a great need for botanical gardens for the ex situ conservation of threatened woody species in devoted conservation collections. The box tree (Buxus hyrcana Pojark.) is an endemic and endangered species of Hyrcanian forests, northern Iran. In recent years, many individuals of this species have been dried in a considerable range of Hyrcanian

Social interaction and physical activity are of paramount importance to children’s health and development and parks are one setting where children can be active and interact with others. However, the specific features of parks that promote or support physical activity and social interaction are not well-understood. The aim of this study was to examine the perceived importance of a selection of park

Demographic data show booming metropolitan populations and the related rapid spread of urbanized areas. Cities already harbor numerous diverse habitats, including gardens, varying greatly both in terms of floristics and architectural attributes. The way gardens are designed and managed is of crucial importance for the birds associated with them. The present work provides a comprehensive overview of

There is an increasing evidence that natural environment provides substantial human health benefits. One mechanism underlying this relationship is the experience of stress. However, no formal statistical assessment has been conducted to test this statement. A meta-analysis was used in our study to conduct a comprehensive systematic review for the effect of direct exposure to natural environment on

Increasing urban tree cover is an often proposed mitigation strategy against urban heat as trees are expected to cool cities through evapotranspiration and shade provision. However, trees also modify wind flow and urban aerodynamic roughness, which can potentially limit heat dissipation. Existing studies show a varying cooling potential of urban trees in different climates and times of the day. These

Urban foraging is widely prevalent globally, and can provide foragers benefits like additional income and nutritional supplements. However, urban foraging is largely understudied and we have little information on types of species foraged, patterns of foraging, socio-economic profile of foragers, and impact of urbanization on foraging. In this study, we aimed to identify patterns of urban foraging in

Forest therapy involves engaging in a combination of forest-based activities to improve one’s health or wellbeing. We conducted an overview of systematic reviews (SRs) and meta-analyses of primary studies to provide the most comprehensive summary of the effect of forest therapy on depression. We included 13 primary studies that matched our eligibility criteria - all were included in four recent SRs

Understanding interactions between resident and non-resident birds in urban areas is important for managing urban greenspace to protect urban bird diversity. Here, we determined how interactions between resident and non-resident species potentially affect bird diversity in the urban green species of Macau (subtropical area of China). We examined seasonal fluctuations in the habitat use and structuring

While green roofs have been deemed promising in mitigating environmental issues caused by rapid urban development, city-scale green roof studies have faced various obstacles, especially difficulties in obtaining accurate data for analysis. This study developed a new, cost-effective approach to assessing green roof development potential by using ultra-high-resolution (UHR) (0.09 m) Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

There is a close-knit link between people and cultural ecosystem services (CESs). Many methods have been verified as being able to value CESs. However, different methods have focused on specific aspects of CESs and have different highlights and challenges, which makes it difficult to select an appropriate method for specific research. To solve this problem, it is important to understand comprehensively

Balancing the ecosystem service (ES) mismatch should be a goal of sustainable urban planning. However, (i) many urban areas lack an assessment of this mismatch and (ii) scientific findings are not easily translatable into good practices. In this study, we assessed the mismatch for two regulating ESs—regulation of air quality (intended as PM10 removal by vegetation) and urban temperature regulation—in

A liveable city requires urban green spaces (UGS) in many locations, since such spaces have a direct impact on the quality of life and overall well-being of city dwellers. UGS provision analyses therefore have been attracting a number of researchers, practitioners and decision makers for recent years using various methodologies. In this study, we conduct reference UGS provision analysis using accurate

This study investigates the multidimensional health benefits of revitalizing abandoned urban spaces versus the adverse impact of vacant properties on residents. We examined the city of Daegu, South Korea, which has endeavored to change vacant spaces into small urban farms and community shelters. In the study, in-depth interviews and intercept surveys were conducted with nearby residents. The results

Cities have been identified as key actors in climate change mitigation. Nature based carbon sinks have been suggested as a means of mitigating the greenhouse gas emissions of cities. Although there are several studies on the carbon storage and sequestration (CSS) of urban green, the role of residential sites is not fully understood. In addition, the carbon storage of soils is often excluded. Also the

Arboricultural climbing is inherently dangerous and although previous studies have investigated forces associated with ascents, abrupt stops during descents, and simulated falls, no studies have measured forces for typical climbing actions. Neither have studies measured motion of a tie-in point (TIP) and branch as a climber walked on the branch. We measured forces at the TIP and accelerations at the

Urban trees can play a crucial role in developing sustainable, safe and resilient cities, but at the same time they can pose risks. The study deals with a procedure able to quantify the risk that a tree subjected to the action of a windstorm, without or with ongoing precipitations (a rainstorm), can cause by falling on potential targets located over its area of influence. The procedure has a modular

A knowledge of the characteristics of urban green spaces (UGSs) such as their abundance, spatial distribution and species composition, has an important role in a range of fields such as urban geography, urban planning and public health. Remote sensing technologies have made great contributions to the analysis of UGSs. However, a comprehensive review of the current status, challenges and potential in

Many studies examine the correlation between the use of resources such as water, energy and land, and the production of food. These nexus studies focus predominantly on large scale systems, often considering the social dimensions only in terms of access to resources and participation in the decision-making process, rather than individual attitudes and behaviours with respect to resource use. Such a

Urban trees play a key role in alleviating elevated summertime land surface temperatures in cities. However, urban landscape influences the capacity of urban trees to mitigate higher temperatures. We propose that both developed land characteristics and tree cover should be considered to accurately estimate the mitigation effects of canopy cover. We subclassified original land cover based on the canopy

The impact on the Profile of Mood States (POMS) of both walking in forest environments and viewing forest landscapes has already been demonstrated in previous research conducted by the authors of this paper. In both walking and viewing, decreases in tension-anxiety (T–A), depression-dejection (D), anger-hostility (A–H), fatigue (F), and confusion (C) were observed and an increase in vigor (V) was observed

Managing tree health in urban environments is complicated due to the disconnect that exists between novel environmental conditions created by urbanization and those under which tree species evolved. Soils influence tree health and growth, but optimal nutrient and pH recommendations are often informed by agricultural and horticultural norms which do not typically include norms for forest tree species

In the United States, urban forests represent 35 % of all urban land cover, and deliver benefits to nearly two-thirds of the population. As global urban populations continue to rise, however, redevelopment is continually reported as a major factor in reduced canopy cover. While urban trees provide us with measurable benefits when adequately maintained, their costs when not cared for remains poorly

Cities in sub-Saharan Africa are rapidly growing and transforming. This leads to increased demand for accessible urban green spaces (UGSs). Various efforts have been made in order to address these issues. However, despite the abundant scientific literature available on the accessibility of UGSs in many parts of the world, only a few studies have been conducted in sub-Saharan Africa and particularly

Climate change is affecting tree growth and vitality, including potentially accelerating growth rate or exacerbating drought stress. Physiological and phenological changes of a tree may eventually disrupt the beneficial effects that it provides to the ecosystem (‘ecosystem services’). This research examined how the urban forest in Canberra has responded to climate change in the last 20 years. A road

The present study evaluated the role of having plants at home during the confinement period as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic that deprived people of freely visiting open green spaces. Preferences concerning the quantity of the desired vegetation as well as the ways in which the COVID-19 crisis affected the change of perceptions with regard to having plants at home were also evaluated. A questionnaire

Urban green space is an important element of well-being. It is still, however, lacking of research on green space demand analyzing based on social platform data. This research uses social platform data to evaluate people's demand for urban green space under the background of the global COVID-19 pneumonia. Using the micro-blog database of geographical markers and keywords, this research quantified the

Natural turfgrass sport fields have some advantages as compared to the synthetic sport fields. They are cheaper; can be repaired cost-effectively and provide water filtration, soil stabilization, temperature regulation, CO2 absorption and O2 release to atmosphere. Yet, the maintenance procedures especially fertilization should be carried out carefully to prevent pollution of natural resources due to

Trees have significant shading and cooling effects because of their crowns. This study investigated the cooling effects of their crown attribute on urban microclimate adjustment and thermal comfort improvement. These attributes included the ratio of crown diameter to branching position height (D/PH) and crown porosity, which were measured using the leaf area index and leaf gap ratio. Field measurements