Urban Forestry & Urban Greening xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx
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Original article
Preferences and emotion perceptions of ornamental plant species for green space designing among urban park users in Iran ⁎
Shafagh Rahnemaa, Shahram Sedaghathoora, Mohammad Sadegh Allahyarib, , Christos A. Damalasc, Hamid El Bilalid a
Department of Horticulture, Rasht Branch, Islamic Azad University, Rasht, Iran Department of Agricultural Management, Rasht Branch, Islamic Azad University, Rasht, Iran c Department of Agricultural Development, Democritus University of Thrace, Orestiada, Greece d Centre for Development Research, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), Peter Jordan Strasse 76, A-1190 Vienna, Austria b
A R T I C LE I N FO
A B S T R A C T
Keywords: Green space Public perception Sense of place Urban landscape
The main objective of the present study was to explore preferences and eumotion perceptions of people in Rasht and Ardabil (Iran) to some ornamental plants in order to help designing appropriate urban green landscapes. The study surveyed urban park users in the two cities in 2017 to identify and compare the most important factors underpinning the viability of public open spaces from the perspective of users (mental aspect) and the extent to which these mental factors match the visual features of the selected spaces (visual aspect). A random sample of 232 individuals was taken from students in Ardabil (119 persons) and Rasht (113 persons). A considerable part of the participants (37.2%) reported a feeling of tranquility when they saw flowers, while 28.8% of the participants reported a feeling of love. Flower-bearing plant species were more appealing to the participants than leafy ornamental plants. Red was the most preferred flower color (52.1%) followed by violet (18.6%) and orange (11.4%) among the ornamental species commonly used in the design of green spaces, while tulip (Tulipa gesneriana) (29%), rose (Rosa hybrida) (25%), and Easter lily (Lilium longiflorum) (19%) were in the first top ranks of preferences, respectively. Coleus (Solenostemon scutellarioides) and garden croton (Codiaeum variegatum) were also reported among preferred species. The results support the assumption of similarity in preferences and requirements of citizens of large cities and despite great diversity in geography, culture, and ethics, people in large cities exhibit similar emotion perceptions. The study findings are expected to support public authorities and urban planners to effectively design and manage urban green spaces to meet users' needs.
1. Introduction It is well documented that desired green spaces in cities could have positive psychological and physiological effects on citizens (Balram and Dragićević, 2005; Richardson et al., 2010; Madureira et al., 2015). Indeed, urban green spaces can improve physical health, mental relaxation, job efficiency, and lifestyle; however, this has been largely ignored in urban design (Özgüner and Kendle, 2006; Lee and Maheswaran, 2011; Buchel and Frantzeskaki, 2015). As a result, mental health and social health are more endangered in urban areas than in rural areas (Barton and Pretty, 2010). Green spaces in cities can go a long way towards alleviating the negative impacts of stress as an ever-increasing complication of living in urban areas (Balram and Dragićević, 2005). Societies have been struggling with stress-related disorders in recent years so that these disorders have turned into a big global challenge
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(Bratman et al., 2012). Visual landscapes and nature can influence people’s health and welfare and help to mitigate stress and improve body restoration and recovery (Jim and Chen, 2006; Özgüner, 2011). In this regard, knowledge as to how nature can enhance human health is necessary (Velarde et al., 2007). The combination of plants and their arrangement has great influence on how they are perceived by people (Lindemann-Matthies and Bose, 2007). In most cases, plants are the key environmental variable that creates a picture in the viewer’s mind (Schoen et al., 2009). According to Greene et al. (2011), city trees and the ecosystems of which they are a part, provide important benefits to urban residents. Plant selection for green space architecture is not based merely on an aesthetic and visual perspective; rather, a set of parameters are involved in the selection of suitable species including ecological and natural requirements, yield traits, and aesthetics. However, there is no doubt
Corresponding author. E-mail address:
[email protected] (M.S. Allahyari).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2018.12.007 Received 3 August 2018; Received in revised form 8 December 2018; Accepted 14 December 2018 1618-8667/ © 2018 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.
Please cite this article as: Rahnema, S., Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2018.12.007
