Development of Landscaping and Selection of Contemporary Landscaping Plants

Yueting ZHAI Yidi HU

Abstract   With the acceleration of urbanization in various places， the landscaping in various provinces and cities has been developed to varying degrees. Therefore， further standardizing the principles of urban greening landscape design plays an important role in rationally preparing urban landscaping and highlighting urban characteristics and regional cultural characteristics. From the perspective of the locations of gardens， occupiers’ identities， the development mode， the design principle and the arrangement of flowers， this paper classified and expounded the key points of contemporary landscaping， aiming to provide reference for the subsequent construction of landscaping and plant arrangement according to local conditions.

Key words   Landscaping; Greening design; Plant selection

With the continuous improvement of social economy， people’s requirements for high living standards and high quality of life are also deepening. Under this social background， high-quality landscaping and landscape design has become the top priority of current urban construction. Landscape greening refers to further perform renovation and beautification by mountains building， stone laying， and cascade applying appropriate engineering landscaping techniques and flower garden artistic means in a certain area， according to the specific terrain and conditions different regions， on the basis of respecting and retaining the original landscape characteristics， or to create a beautiful natural environment and recreational realm through complete reconstruction by eliminating the  original  terrain， planting trees and flowers， planting grass， building houses， and arranging garden roads. From the perspective of urban landscape greening， landscape design and greening plant maintenance are very important. However， because the current landscape design industry standards are not completely unified and greening design is also in a state of a style characteristic for a region，  the design styles of various garden buildings are mixed， and the quality of the preparation grades varies， which is not conducive to inheriting the style characteristics of excellent traditional buildings and promoting Chinese architectural culture. Based on this， this paper expounded several common garden landscape classifications， urban greening and landscape design principles and the main selection of garden landscape greening plants and flowers according to different demands and original environmental characteristics.

The Past and Present of Landscaping

Historically， places used for recreation have been given  different  names due to differences in content and form. During the Shang and Zhou Dynasties in China， areas where livestock were raised for hunting and sightseeing were called parks and hunting gardens. In the historical period of the Qin and Han Dynasties， the place for emperors to play and enjoy the scenery was called gardens （Yuan） or palatial gardens （Gong Yuan）  [1] ， and those belonging to governments or individuals are called for gardens， residence gardens， villas，  etc.   [2] . With the change of times， its appellation is also constantly changing. The word "garden" was first seen in the poems after the Western Jin Dynasty. There are many poems that echo it， describing the beauty， wonder， and usefulness of gardens. For example， Zhang Han’s  Miscellaneous Poems  in the Western Jin Dynasty says "the late spring is harmonious， and the sun shines in gardens"， describing the vapor and sunlight that exist at the same time in late spring， which makes people fascinated  [3] . In the Northern Wei Dynasty， Yang Xuanzhi’s  Luoyang Qielan Ji  commented on the residence of Sinong Zhang Lun and said：  "The  beauty of gardens， mountains and ponds is beyond the reach of kings". This sentence even describes that the beauty of gardens is beyond the reach of princes and generals， and people wants to have it  [4] . After the Tang and Song Dynasties， the term garden was more widely used to refer to the  above-mentioned  entertainment places， and it was also used by the literati among the ancients to refer to many elegant places. For the modern way of life， gardens have the functions of recreation， protection and beautification at the same time. In addition， it is a good choice to take a walk or play in gardens after a long time of sitting or standing at work  [5] . The culture， recreation， sports， popular science education and other activities carried by gardens enrich the knowledge of gardens， enrich themselves and life， and add a touch of color to people’s lives  [6] .

It is worth mentioning that the report of the 18  th  National Congress of the Communist Party of China included the construction of "beautiful China" and the construction of "ecological  civilization"  into the party constitution， highlighting the unprecedented importance that policymakers attach to ecological and  environmental  protection. It also means that the country and the people yearn for a beautiful， green and environment-friendly society. With the development of Beautiful China Construction， the role of garden construction has gradually become prominent， and its investment has continued to increase， entering a stage of rapid development. Vigorously building urban and greening rural areas， make the environment more suitable for people’s life and people’s life more colorful  [7] .

Classification of Landscaping

Classification of gardens by region

From the geographical point of view， gardens can be divided into the following three categories （Table 1）.

Northern urban gardens： Gardens in the north are often grand. Because of the vast area in the north， gardens usually occupy a large area; and because most of them are located in ancient capitals， the political economy is highly concentrated， and the cultural atmosphere is rich， most of them are magnificent. Restricted by natural climatic conditions， there are few rivers， lakes， rough stones and evergreen trees. Because the style is rough， the gardens are not beautiful enough. The representatives of northern gardens are mostly concentrated in the areas north of the Yangtze River， such as Beijing， Xi’an， Luoyang， Kaifeng， especially ancient Luoyang  [8] .

Jiangnan traditional gardens： They are often used to reflect the aesthetic sentiments of literati and refined scholars， so the whole is relatively fresh and refined， elegant and natural， and the representatives are mostly concentrated in Yangzhou， Shanghai， Suzhou， Hangzhou and other places， especially Suzhou， which is the most prominent among them  [9-10] .

Lingnan gardens： Traditional Lingnan gardens that exist today include the four famous Lingnan gardens，  i.e. ， Liangyuan， Qinghui Garden in Shunde， Guangdong， Keyuan in Dongguan， and Yuyin Shanfang in Panyu. Their obvious feature is that the buildings stand tall and have a tropical regional style. In addition， since most of them are located on the southern waterfront， the architecture has been influenced by the West since modern times and has Western characteristics  [11] .

Classification of gardens based on affiliation

From the identities of the owners， gardens can be divided into the following three categories：

Royal gardens： Royal gardens are an important part of royal family building complexes， and they are also a symbol of the royal family style. They have a magnificent construction style， and the materials used are extravagant. Royal gardens have strong royal family atmosphere. They integrate the essence of gardens and have unique design concept. The most famous ones in history are Efang Palace and Shanglin Garden in the Qin and Han Dynasties， Xiyuan in Luoyang in the Sui Dynasty and Huaqing Palace in Lishan， and Summer Palace， Beihai， Summer Resort and the Old Summer Palace in the Qing Dynasty  [12] .

Private gardens： Most of the builders of private gardens are princes， nobles， landlords， scholars，  etc.  Compared with the obvious royal style of royal gardens， the style of private gardens is fresh and elegant， which shows the noble sentiments of literati. The main feature is the small scale， and the design concept is "seeing much in little". Most of them take a water surface as the center， surrounded by scattered buildings. They are mainly used for self-cultivation， leisure and entertainment. The garden style pursues fresh and elegant  [13] .

Temple gardens： Temple gardens are also known as religious gardens. The main style features are solemn， quiet and solemn space atmosphere. The more famous ones in history are the Dachengtian Husheng Temple in the Yuan Dynasty and the Baiyun Temple in the Qing Dynasty. The existing one is the Yuantong Temple in Kunming， which was built in the Nanzhao era of the Tang Dynasty and is one of the oldest Buddhist and temple cultures in Kunming. It is located in the south of Yuantong Mountain. It is quiet in the hustle， and has a rigorous layout， a prominent main body and a unique artistic style  [14] .

Classification of gardens based on development modes

From the perspective of development mode， gardens can be divided into the following two categories：

Natural gardens： Natural gardens are built based on the original natural style by maintaining its original characteristics， removing the clutter， carefully opening paths and arranging the garden buildings. The gardens are formed without labor and free of any other changes  [15] .

Artificial gardens： Within a certain spatial location and geographical range， under the process of human social development， the environments are artificially created， such as small parks， gardens， bonsai gardens，  etc. ， to improve ecology， beautify the environment， and meet the needs of recreation and cultural life. They occupy a large proportion in today’s garden design  [16] .

Principles of landscaping applied to urban greening and landscape design

In the design of urban greening， five principles are usually  adopted：  the principle of applicability， the principle of aesthetics， the principle of ecology， the principle of diversity， and the principle of innovation  [17] . The following are the specific principles：

The principle of applicability

No matter what type of garden design it is， when designing a landscape environment， it is necessary to pay attention to that the design style is consistent with the overall urban environment and cultural style. While respecting the regional culture， it should also have the style of the times.

The principle of aesthetics

In order to create a good landscaping space， designers need to follow the principle of aesthetics， highlight the main characteristics of gardens， and rationally arrange the space pattern to form the condition that one step makes a difference， so as to create a beautiful and rich garden landscape with the characteristics of the times.

The principle of ecology

Urban greening landscape design needs to pay attention to  ecological  diversity， so as to make full use of various elements in a limited space to create a unique leisure place. Meanwhile， attention should be paid to protecting the environment and avoiding damage to cities’ original ecological circles.

The principle of diversity

In the selection of greening landscape plants， the diversity of plants and flowers is conducive to increasing the stability of the community and prolonging the preservation time of greening landscapes. Meanwhile， the diversity of flowers and plants can increase the ornamental value and aesthetics of landscape design.

The principle of innovation

The design style of urban greening landscape should be consistent with contemporary aesthetics and the characteristics of the times， abandon traditional design concepts， and innovate the layout of garden planning.

Top Choices for Landscaping Plants and  Flowers

The selection and application of garden plants should be adapted to local conditions， and proceed from the actual local condition. It should avoid deliberately creating gardens， getting half the result with twice the effort and destroying the beauty of gardens themselves， and maintain and exhibit the beauty of gardens to the greatest extent. Tree species that are not suitable for local growth in landscaping should not be planted on a large scale， because it will not only result in a low plant survival rate， but also increase the maintenance cost in the later stage of landscaping， affects the economic benefits of landscaping and simultaneously destroys garden structures and causes discomfort to other plants. Therefore， in the selection of landscaping plants， one must be cautious to avoid losses that outweigh the gains. The growth habits， cultivation measures， and economic benefits of plants and flowers should be considered， and appropriate plant varieties should be selected according to local conditions  [18] .

Roadside greening should choose some tree species represented by ginkgo， sycamore， willow and other tree species that are beautiful， dust-absorbing， and have a high survival rate and the characteristic of easy shaping. Meanwhile， we can choose some flowers that are easy to survive and have a longer flowering period， such as Chinese rose， jonquil， peony，  etc.  Plant species should be diversified and well-organized. Not only tall and majestic trees can be used， but medium herbs， low shrubs and moss can be used as well to give the greenery a layered， vertical structure. Plants that reflect urban characteristics and regional culture are integrated into the landscaping in the landscaped areas， such as coconut trees and other  characteristic  tree species commonly found in street greening in Hainan  [19]  （Table 2）.

Gingko

Ginkgo is a deciduous tree species of the genus  Ginkgo  in Ginkgoaceae. The adult plants can grow up to 40 m. It is recognized as a tall tree with good ornamental value for greening and beautifying the environment. Ginkgo trees are majestic， tall， straight and beautiful. In summer or late autumn， you can often see the trees full of golden colors， which adds a bit of sense of autumn. Ginkgo has a long lifespan， so it has a long viewing cycle and is of high ornamental value. The trees are lush in spring and summer， and golden in autumn， and they often attract pedestrians to stop and watch. Meanwhile， due to its growth characteristics and fruit characteristics， male plants are often selected for greening in densely populated places to avoid seeds and fruits falling and polluting the road and people’s clothing.

Phoenix trees

"Phoenix tree" is a deciduous tree species of  Firmiana  in Sterculiaceae.  The trees have tall and straight trunks， and lush branches and leaves. The leaves are beautiful， and have green and yellow leaf colors. The bark is mainly green， and have smooth surface. The trees are often lush and leafy， and the crowns are mostly oval. Chiang Kai-shek once planted phoenix trees all  over  Nanjing City because of his love to Song Meiling， and they are still a beautiful landscape. Phoenix trees have fast growth rate， high tolerance and stress resistance， are easy to cultivate， and can withstand a lot of pruning without damage. Moreover， they have good tolerance to toxic and harmful gases emitted by cities. Therefore， they occupy a major position in urban greening.

Chinese rose

Chinese rose is the queen of flowers in the eyes of many people， also known as "Red Moon". It is a species of evergreen or semi-evergreen dwarf shrub belonging to Rosaceae. After artificial cultivation， it has a wide variety of varieties， which can bloom all year round. In north-south landscaping， roses are widely used， with various types and forms， and it is also one of the most frequently used flowers， which also shows the important position of roses in landscaping. In addition， spring is also the main flowering season of Chinese roses， so it has become one of the main ornamental flowers in spring. Meanwhile， due to its low price， high ornamental value and easy maintenance， it has been loved by many horticultural designers at home and abroad.

F. concinna

F. concinna  is an evergreen tree species in  Ficus  of Moraceae. It is easy to transplant， long-lived， and has developed aerial roots. The trees are lush， green， beautiful， and serve as an important garden plant in southern China. They are common in squares， parks， courtyards.

M. grandiflora

M. grandiflora  is an evergreen tree species of  Magnolia  in Magnoliaceae. It is native to the southeast of Beizhou， and normal plants can sometimes reach 30 m. Its flowers are large and fragrant， white， highly ornamental. It is suitable for artificial cultivation. In addition， the trees have strong resistance to toxic and harmful gases such as sulfur dioxide， chlorine， and hydrogen fluoride in cities， and can reduce their harm to a certain extent. They are also resistant to smoke and dust.  M. grandiflora  is an ornamental tree species more common in garden greening.

Conclusions

Landscaping is of great significance in urban landscaping and characteristic cultural expression. In the era of rapid social development， landscaping has gradually been widely used in various aspects in actual life. When designing greening landscapes， we should first understand the basic common sense of landscaping，  abide  by the basic principles of urban landscaping in the application， and select green plants reasonably according to different regions and environments， so that the beauty is always there.

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