The Lorenz von Ehren nursery supports the University of Hamburg in the project “BoBaSt Soil Substrate and Tree Species Selection for Climate-Adapted Urban Tree Plantings”

The Hamburg tree nursery provides space, trees and manpower for the university project – evaluation of results is underway

This project investigates how the future urban tree population can be adapted to longer summer dry phases. To this end, suitable soil substrates are tested in combination with a selection of promising tree species and varieties. A total of 135 trees, including nine different species and varieties and five trees per species/variety in three different substrates.

Motivation and focus for the Lorenz von Ehren nursery are the resulting recommendations for the choice of tree species and varieties in the city in the face of climate change, in close coordination with a suitable soil substrate recommendation. It is already apparent that the soil is currently much too dry for the season, even more so in the cities.

“Climate change is a big issue for the nursery industry. We have noticed it for years in our trees, so we consider it forward-looking for us to accompany this field trial and to make space, trees and personnel available directly in our nursery.”

Bernhard von Ehren, managing partner

"BoBaSt Soil Substrate and Tree Species Selection for Climate-Adapted Urban Tree Plantings"

The project is scheduled to run over three years. The Lorenz von Ehren nursery in Hamburg is providing around 1/2 hectare of land, 135 trees of 14-16 cm trunk circumference and around 350 staff hours in the initialisation phase alone. In this way, the nursery is supporting an immensely important research project of the Institute of Soil Science at the University of Hamburg for future-orientated findings on the urban trees of the future.

Three large, medium and slow-growing species are being tested: Quercus palustris (pin oak), Quercus cerris (Austrian oak), Tilia cordata ‘Greenspire‘ (small-leaved linden), Ostrya carpinifolia (European hop-hornbeam), Gleditsia triacanthos ‘Skyline‘ (honey locust), Liquidambar styraciflua (American sweetgum), Amelanchier lamarckii (juneberry), Carpinus betulus ‘Lucas‘ (common hornbeam Lucas), Koelreuteria paniculata (goldenrain tree).

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