URBAN HABITATS, VOLUME 2, NUMBER 1 • ISSN 1541-7115 Floristic Investigations of Historical Parks in St. Petersburg, Russia http://www.urbanhabitats.org Floristic Investigations of Historical Parks * in St. Petersburg, Russia Maria Ignatieva1 and Galina Konechnaya2 1Landscape Architecture Group, Environment, Society and Design Division, P.O. Box 84, Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand;
[email protected] 2V.L. Komarov Botanical Institute, Russian Academy of Science, 2 Professora Popova Street , St. Petersburg, 197376, Russia;
[email protected] floristic investigations led us to identify ten plant Abstract From 1989 to 1998, our team of researchers indicator groups. These groups can be used for future conducted comprehensive floristic and analysis and monitoring of environmental conditions phytocoenological investigations in 18 historical in the parks. This paper also includes analyses of parks in St. Petersburg, Russia. We used sample plant communities in 3 of the 18 parks. Such analyses quadrats to look at plant communities; we also are useful for determining the success of past studied native species, nonnative species, “garden restoration projects in parks and other habitats and escapees,” and exotic nonnaturalized woody species for planning and implementing future projects. in numerous types of park habitat. Rare and Key words: floristic and phytoencological endangered plants were mapped and photographed, investigations, St. Petersburg, Russia, park, flora, and we analyzed components of the flora according anthropogenic, anthropotolerance, urbanophyle to their ecological peculiarities, reaction to human influences (anthropotolerance), and origin. The entire Introduction The historical gardens and parks of St. Petersburg, park flora consisted of 646 species of vascular plants Russia, are valued as monuments of landscape belonging to 307 genera and 98 families.