The evaluation of toxicity in ornamental plants - element in ecological landscape design

Abstract

Ornamental plants can create allergenic, irritative and toxic diseases. The knowledge of potentially toxic plants is a public health issue. This paper aims to study the unwanted effects of ornamental plants on health, correlated with the presence of these plants in parks and gardens. The main research methods used were: bibliographical study, analysis and synthesis of data, collection and processing of statistical and legislative data, case-centered analysis. The information was provided by scientific literature. The analysis units were green urban spaces in Iasi. The paper centralizes the potentially pathogenic effects of ornamental plants, exemplifying with herbaceous and ligneous vegetation present in Romanian flora. Urban landscapes in Iasi were evaluated from an ambient health perspective. In the structure of landscape designs it is recommended to avoid the use of highly allergenic and toxic species. It is necessary for different designing programmes to consider the impact on health.