XERISCAPING – SMART LANDSCAPING WITH INDIGENOUS PLANTS ADAPTED TO DROUGHT

Rezumat

Urban green spaces play a crucial role in improving environmental quality, mitigating climate change impacts, and enhancing the well-being of city inhabitants. However, water scarcity caused by global warming, population growth, pollution, and unsustainable irrigation practices increasingly threatens the sustainability of conventional landscaping models. The use of turfgrass and non-native species with high water requirements has amplified this pressure, often resulting in degraded and visually unappealing urban landscapes during summer droughts.
Xeriscaping, a concept developed in the early 1980s in Denver, USA, represents a sustainable landscaping approach based on water-efficient planning, the use of drought-tolerant plants, soil conservation techniques, and reduced maintenance inputs. This paper explores the potential of xeriscaping for urban areas in Romania, where climate change and soil aridization are becoming more pronounced. Particular emphasis is placed on the integration of indigenous flora adapted to drought conditions, which can provide ecological, economic, and aesthetic benefits.