VWW: WIENER BÄUME - It's a Tree Story

A tour to celebrate the role trees play in our lives - for nature, psychologically, physically, artistically, and in terms of beauty.

Trees are central to life, providing us with food, shade, protection and a chance to escape fast city life. We understand the passing of seasons through walking under them, and in childhood climb and build houses up in them.

The Vienna Woods are famous around the world, and our city is unusually green, with 49% of its land being natural.

The trees in Tuerkenschanzpark are unusual, because for a very long time, they have provided an experimental space for students and teachers of BOKU to research and adapt nature in an urban space.

But trees are under pressure in new and old ways. Not just climate change, but cyclists tying bikes to them, dogs urinating on them, car-drivers choosing parking space over nature in front of their houses, and pressure for more space to live or save money mean the future of Vienna trees is challenging. A typical tree costs €25k across its life, and lives only 40 years. Which varieties can adapt fast enough to a world with less water, more heat, and invasive new species?

All public trees are lovingly recorded on the Baumkataster, including their type, age and history. The trend is towards planting trees here which are already ten years old, to give them more chance of surviving.

We will also look at birds, insects, colours, names, metaphors, songs, oldest, good stories and how trees are used for paper, future building trends, etc.