Selection of Water-Saving Plants and Annual Water Consumption Estimation for Garden Green Spaces in Beijing

Qun Yin,Zhongkui Jia,Yi Qu,Xiaodeng Shi,Yang Zhou,Shuangjiang Xiong,Luyi Ma,Jinglan Liu

doi:10.3390/f12111572

Qun Yin, Zhongkui Jia + Show 6 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/f12111572

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Abstract

Currently, the number of urban garden green spaces (GGSs) being constructed in Beijing is increasing, and their high water resource demands contradict the severe water shortage situation in Beijing that is restricting urban construction and economic development. This has created an urgent need to build water-saving GGSs. This study analyzed and compared the daily/annual water consumption of 79 common plants in Beijing, and low-water-consumption (LWC) trees, shrubs and herbs were selected; additionally, the total annual water consumption (TAWC) of all plants in the built-up areas of all 16 districts in Beijing was calculated according to the result of the eighth general survey of landscaping resources in Beijing. The results are as follows: (1) fifteen LWC tree species were selected from among 25 species, and the average daily water consumption (DWC) was <1.09 kg·m−2; (2) nineteen LWC shrubs were selected from among 35 shrubs, and the average DWC was <1.17 kg·m−2; (3) eleven LWC herbs were selected from among 19 herbs, and the AWC was <460.3 kg·m−2; (4) the TAWC of all trees, shrubs and herb plants in the Beijing GGSs was 1.104 × 109, 0.139 × 109, and 0.16 × 109 m3, respectively. Based on the above results, it was estimated that the TAWC of all plants in the built-up areas of all 16 districts in Beijing is approximately 1.403 × 109 m3. These findings provide a better understanding of the water consumption of GGS plants in cities in semiarid and semihumid climates and can be used to help select LWC greening plants that can reduce water consumption when expanding green areas in cities.

Highlights

With intensifying global climate change and explosive population growth, industrialization and urbanization, two-thirds of the world’s population faces a serious shortage of water resources, nearly half of whom live in China and India [2,3,4]
The studies may differ in their water consumption amounts for the same plant, the average value was obtained from the different research results, and the daily water consumption (DWC) of a plant was obtained
The water consumption amounts of 79 plants (25 trees, 35 shrubs and 19 herbs) were determined, where the water consumption for trees and shrubs was the DWC per unit of leaf area, and the water consumption for herbs was the AWC per area [15,28]

Summary

Introduction

Water is recognized as the resource that is most critical for human survival, and it is an important strategic resource for social and economic development and ecological environmental protection [1]. With intensifying global climate change and explosive population growth, industrialization and urbanization, two-thirds of the world’s population (approximately 4.0 × 109 people) faces a serious shortage of water resources, nearly half of whom live in China and India [2,3,4]. The total amount of water resources in China is. 2796.26 × 109 m3 , accounting for only 5.1% of the total global water resources. The per capita water resources are small, at 2039.25 m3 , accounting for only 25% of the global per capita water resources [5]. The water resource shortages in many Chinese cities

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