Plant Ecology in a Changing World
  • Topics
    • Topic Overview
    • Biomes and Climates in a Changing World >
      • Adaptation, biodiversity, and environment
      • Climate constrains plant distributions
      • Biome and climate relationships
      • Deserts
      • Grassland, savanna, and shrub biomes
      • Forest biomes
      • Alpine and tundra biomes
    • Plant adaptation >
      • Plant microclimate 1
      • Plant microclimate 2
      • Leaf energy budgets
      • Water movement through the soil-plant continuum
      • Principles of photosynthesis
      • Photosynthesis responses to light and temperature
      • Environmental stresses limit resource capture and use
      • Nutrients in the environment
      • Adaptation to environmental stress
    • Resource Allocation Changes with Environment >
      • Architecture and canopy processes
      • Plant phenology and resource allocation enhance performance
      • Leaf economic spectrum
      • Life history and reproduction
      • Defense against herbivory
      • Plant competition
    • Plant Responses to a Changing World >
      • Global changes occurring today
      • Invasive species
      • Atmospheric CO2 impacts plant
      • C3/C4 photosynthesis and climate
      • Climate change and the global carbon cycle
      • Climate warming and its impacts
    • Engineering Plant Communities >
      • Remember Utah's past and envision our future
      • Restoration ecology
      • Managed ecosystems
      • Utah urban ecology
      • Urban ecological futures
  • Assignments
    • Assignment Overview
    • Discussion
    • Problem sets
    • Ecology & Global Changes
    • Plant ecology policy
    • Defense of policy
    • Exam #1
    • Exam #2
  • Campus
    • Campus Overview
    • Grasses
    • Green infrastructure >
      • GI Overview
      • Stormwater >
        • GI 1
        • GI 2
        • GI 3
        • GI 4
        • GI 10
      • Green roof
      • Pollinator >
        • Pollinator species
    • Trees of the Wasatch
    • Shrubs of the Wasatch
    • Invasives
  • Biomes
    • Biome Overview
    • Climate diagrams
    • Vegetation sight-seeing trip
    • Biome images
  • Models
  • Lab

Green infrastructure describes plant assemblages constructed to provide an ecological service

On our campus, you will find many different designs of green infrastructure, some of which we will see on our campus walk. While collections of plants often serve valuable aesthetic functions, green infrastructure is a term that describes plant assemblages constructed for a specific ecological service or function. Some are designed to capture stormwater and street pollutants. Others function as hot spots for native pollinators. Still others serve to cool the tops of buildings. The Center for Ecological Planning + Design is developing a Landscape Lab in Research Park to explore the benefits and functionality of different green infrastructure designs and different species compositions that may provide a variety of ecological services. By the end of this walk, students will be able to (a) distinguish three different kinds of green infrastructure on campus, (b) identify key species associated with stormwater management systems, and (c) recognize stormwater flow connections that relate to the size of the green infrastructure.

Click here for a handout to help guide you if you wish to take this walk on your own.
Click here to download questions to be answered about this campus walk.


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Campus green infrastructure walk

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Roof garden green infrastructure
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​Stormwater run-off green infrastructure
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Pollinator green infrastructure
Jim Ehleringer, University of Utah