Street trees suffer from drought and temperatures

The Office for Urban Greenery and Water in Leipzig refers in particular to the heat and drought years of 2018, 2019 and 2020, which were very hard on the trees. "Due to drought damage and consequential damage caused by disease or pest infestation, tree failures are still to be expected", the office announced. Due to the persistently dry summers, the city has been watering trees up to the age of ten since 2018. In addition to good site conditions, such as sufficient root space, the selection of species and varieties in terms of crown shape, foliage coloration and fruit shape as well as climate tolerance is of particular importance when planting trees. There are currently around 57,300 street trees in Leipzig and 1370 were planted last year.

The city of Chemnitz also wants to convert its stock of 36,000 street trees to be climate-resilient. Around 250 trees are planted every year. According to a spokesperson, the focus is on comparatively drought-tolerant tree species. These include the plane tree, the silver lime, the hazel tree, the sweet chestnut and the amber tree. When replanting individual trees, however, an attempt will be made to replant the tree species that already dominates the street.