Papers
The calculation method, data sources, station validation and limitations are described in detail in a preprint: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23436244
Gilik, E., & Yılmaz, M. (2026). KURAS: A decision support system for the water need and winter suitability of landscape plants in Türkiye [Preprint]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23436244
The change in local water need and winter suitability under the climates of 2050 and 2090: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23436246
Gilik, E., & Yılmaz, M. (2026). Climate change impact on local water need and winter suitability of landscape plants in Türkiye: 2050 and 2090 projections with KURAS [Preprint]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23436246
Both are English editions of Turkish preprints; the Turkish originals are linked from the Zenodo records.
Plant information sources
- Provincial guides of the Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change of Türkiye: province-level records of drought-tolerant plants.
- Academic publications from Türkiye: water use reported in studies of xeriscaping, urban parks and campuses.
- Institutional guides: e.g. the Xeriscape Guide of the Union of Southeastern Anatolia Region Municipalities (GABB).
- International horticultural databases and guides: water need and USDA hardiness zone information published by universities and public bodies (e.g. NC State Extension, Missouri Botanical Garden, regional water authorities). In addition, for plants with no water information in any other source, the Queensland Government Waterwise plant list (CC BY) and the American University of Beirut (AUB) Landscape Plants Database are used.
- Taxonomy: Kew Plants of the World Online, the GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and verified name records for scientific names and synonyms.
- Guide content: the xeriscape guide page summarises the Xeriscape Guidance Document (2025) of the General Directorate of Water Management, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Türkiye.
Which source each result is based on is stated in each plant’s detail panel and in the PDF/Excel report.
Climate data
Daily values for 1991–2020 and FAO-56 reference evapotranspiration (ET₀) were computed from hourly Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) ERA5-Land (temperature, humidity) and ERA5 (precipitation, wind, solar radiation) data. Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026; modified by KURAS. Neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use that may be made of this information.
Method principles
- No AI prediction is made during the analysis; all rules are defined in advance and versioned.
- An unknown value is never treated as “low water” or “safe”.
- Drought tolerance, water need, presence in a provincial guide and winter suitability are separate concepts.
- Differences between sources are not hidden; the rationale of the choice and the opposing values are shown.
- Plant data and calculation rules stay on the server; only the result of your own analysis is sent to the browser.
Rights holders
At the request of the cited institutions and authors, the relevant data are corrected or removed without delay. Contact: enesgilik1@gmail.com