Former and contemporary threats to historic gardens

In this paper, the comparison of former and contemporary threats to the value of historic gardens has been carried out. The analysis was based upon the publication of Majdecki, dating back to the 80s and 90s of the 20th c., being treated as a reference to the currently observed negative practices. In this article, verification of the earlier classification of phenomena, constituting a threat to the historic gardens, was suggested. Observations by the authors and scientific publications from the recent ten years have been adopted as the basis for conclusions and syntheses

Smart historical gardens

Historical parks and garden sites provide a range of social, environmental, ecosystem, recreational, and scientific services. They are witnesses of history, resources of biotic (botanical and dendrological collections) and abiotic (historical buildings or complexes) attributes, sources of knowhow about park maintenance and management accumulated over the centuries as transfer between past and future generations. A series of hazards and processes for finding the best strategies to adapt to climate change are now generally researched. They should also apply to historical greenery – it is particularly sensitive to such alterations. This study aimed to identify the most important pro-climate and pro-ecological trends as well as specific material and organisational solutions noticed by the jury of selected European professional competitions: “European Garden Award”, “Garden of the Year Award” (UK), “Monument of the Year” (Germany) and “Well-kept Monument” (Poland). The available competition regulations, published laudations, and general characteristics of individual parks were analysed. Not only did the research show a diversified level of development and approach to individual sites at the national level, but also variation in sites’ activation: from basic conservation and restoration works to implementation and promotion of pro-ecological and pro-climate solutions, as well as discrepancy in the priorities for assessing objects set by individual competition committees. An unjust tendency among the majority of researched competitions to marginalise the problem of climate change has been noticed (only recently has this problem started to draw some attention). It can contribute to the loss of a significant part of the garden heritage because any activity in such a sensitive substance requires a relatively longer time and often divides the work process into many stages. Their standardisation and equal development would strengthen the European heritage and resilience to climate change. The exchange of knowledge and experience in the form of good practices and appropriate funding can support these actions

Intelligent Urban Planning and Ecological Urbanscape-Solutions for Sustainable Urban Development. Case Study of Wolfsburg

Intelligent urban planning and ecological urbanism can be recognized as two of the key solutions to act against urban sprawl. This process is associated with suburbanization, blurring boundaries between the city and suburbs, and the undefined role of open and green spaces within new structures. It has been identified as the biggest and the most common problem worldwide. This non-central planning has a huge impact not only on economic aspects, but—most of all—on the ecological and landscaping balance within the urban area. This study covers not only the recognition of the outlined situation, but also a conceptual proposal to challenge the problems of urban sprawl. The city of Wolfsburg serves as a case study to which the tools of Ecological Urbanism and Intelligent Urbanism were applied. A corrective plan for the study area has been worked out, based on the main approaches in urban planning of the 21st century. The green transformation processes to achieve resiliency within urban areas are inevitable and will have to be conducted due to the rising number of the dwellers, steadily changing climate, and socio-economic conditions all over the world. The main solutions include mainly the system of green corridors, interconnectedness of open spaces, walkability with smart mobile options and social community as a nucleus of a local neighborhood

A historical study of utility gardens within the Klemensów palace and park complex

The main purpose of the research was the historical study of utility gardens, which are separate functional and spatial sections of the palace and park complex in Klemensów. These include a walled-off garden constituting a unique man-made landscape acting as a fruit and vegetable garden, as well as a tree nursery. The utility gardens in Klemensów were a place of acclimation and reproduction of seeds and saplings imported to Poland. Thanks to the expanding possibilities of obtaining and exchanging them from foreign and domestic garden nurseries, over time, the garden in Klemensów became a unique collector’s garden