Poisonous and allergenic plant species in kindergarten gardens in Novi Zagreb city districts

Abstract

Plantings surrounding kindergartens are an integral part of urban green spaces. These open areas play a very important role in the lives of children, in their development, their eating habits, and environmental awareness. For this reason, it is extremely important to select adequate plant species, which are not dangerous for the children. There are 10 public and 9 private preschool institutions in the entire area of the two Novi Zagreb (East and West) city districts. Only public kindergartens have been included in this research. The aim was to determine the size of green open space surrounding public kindergartens, analyse woody plants on site, determine the taxonomic affiliation of plant species, and detect the presence of poisonous and allergenic plant taxa. In green space surrounding kindergartens in the Novi Zagreb – East city district, 49 taxa of trees, and 18 taxa of shrubs and woody climbers from a total of 22 plant families have been identified. Similary, in the Novi Zagreb – West city district, 49 taxa of trees, and 24 taxa of shrubs and woody climbers from a total of 26 plant families have been determined in kindergarten plantings. A total of 32 poisonous taxa, and 36 allergenic taxa have been catalogued in the Novi Zagreb – East city district, while a total of 34 poisonous taxa, and 42 allergenic taxa have been listed in the Novi Zagreb – West city district. The most poisonous species were: Taxus baccata, Prunus laurocerasus and Sambucus nigra. The species with the highest allergenic potential were: Thuja occidentalis, Betula pendula and Acer platanoides.

Keywords

• gardening
• children
• suitable taxa
• toxicity
• allergenicity
• horticulture