The Flora of the Future?

Intriguing essay by Peter Del Tredici that was posted this month entitled The Flora of the Future: Celebrating the Botanical Diversity of Cities. Peter is an associate professor at Harvard GSD and author of Wild Urban Plants of the Northeast. In it he makes a case for novel ecosystems, which are “a system of abiotic, biotic and social components that, by virtue of human influence, differ from those that prevailed historically, having a tendency to self-organize and manifest novel qualities without intensive human management” (Hobbs, Higgs, and Hall; Novel Ecosystems). In other words, these are plant and animal systems that differ from natural systems and have formed because of humans. These have been occurring wherever humans have lived for millennia and have followed our dump heaps. Del Tredici maintains that we have to recognize that these not only exist, but are spreading due to urbanization, globalization, and climate change. These are our new urban ecosystems. Interestingly, he defines a few new ‘infrastructural taxonomies’ that are urban places where survivor plants co-exist—chain link fences, vacant lots, median strips, stone walls, pavement cracks, specialized microclimates, and river corridors. He acknowledges that some of these plants are problematic, such as the invasive exotics or plants that cause problems for people. Del Tredici’s thesis is that landscape architects should embrace these common urban systems and enhance their potential in design. And he’s right, designers should be looking at the potential aesthetics of our most common and biologically significant landscapes. A goldenrod growing on a railroad bank and a goldenrod growing in a perennial garden bed are the same species. The only difference is intent, and it will take very creative solutions to get public acceptance. You can view the full article at http://places.designobserver.com/feature/flora-of-the-future-urban-wild-plants/38417/