Abstract: To understand the ecological adaptability of common garden plants, we analyzed the growth characteristics of 17 common garden plant species in the street green site and the campus green site. We measured microenvironmental characteristics, carbon sequestration, oxygen release, cooling and humidification of plants with the same diameter at breast height (herb was the height of the plant) in the two green sites. We used genotype main effect plus genotype-by-environment interaction biplot and Pearson correlation analysis to analyze the interaction between species identity and site type. The results showed that Sophora japonica, Ginkgo biloba, Prunus persica, Aesculus chinensis, Ligustrum × vicaryi, Berberis thunbergii, Ligustrum sinense and Sabina chinensis had significant differences in carbon sequestration and cooling benefits between the two site types. Under the same land area, S. chinensis showed the strongest carbon sequestration and cooling in the campus with the values of 33.79 g·m^-2·d^-1 and 2.30 ℃, respectively. Photinia × fraseri was the strongest species in the street, with values of 31.47 g·m^-2·d^-1 and 0.84 ℃, respectively. The average carbon sequestration and cooling capacity of plants was higher in the campus than in the street. Trees cooled and humidified better in the street. The microclimatic conditions of campus in the summer were more stable than the street, which was closer to the ideal environment for plant growth. To enhance the ecological function of the green sites in small- and medium-sized towns, we should select trees, shrubs and grasses with better carbon sequestration and cooling benefits, including S. japonica, Koelreuteria paniculata, Ligustrum lucidum, Prunus cerasifera, A. chinensis, Pinus bungeana, S. chinensis, L. sinense, Ligustrum × vicaryi, P. × fraseri and Ophiopogon japonicas.

Key words: street green site, campus green site, carbon fixation, oxygen release, cooling, humidification, genotype main effect plus genotype-by-environment interaction (GGE) biplot