New Experimental Forest Planted at 'Eecherfeld' in Luxembourg City

On Thursday 26 February 2026, the City of Luxembourg (Ville de Luxembourg - VdL), in collaboration with Luxembourg's Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity, the Nature and Forest Agency (ANF) and the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST), planted a new experimental forest as part of the research project "FORLUX - Health, adaptation and resilience of Luxembourg City forests".

According to the VdL, pupils from the "Bëschspillschoul" (forest preschool) actively participated in the planting initiative.

Nearly 3,500 trees will be planted on a one-hectare site in "Eecherfeld" in the Muhlenbach district. The site is divided into four plots, each dedicated to a specific combination of tree species, allowing for the study and comparison of several types of mixed forests: natural regeneration; broadleaf mixture; coniferous mixture; and broadleaf-coniferous mixture.

The selection of tree species is based on the recommendations of the ANF's ecological species file, a tool to support forest managers' choices in the context of climate change adaptation. Only species with a high resistance index to heat waves, high temperatures and frost were selected.

The aforementioned plots will be equipped with sensors to collect data on tree health and air quality in relation to weather conditions, the amount of water infiltrated into the soil and the carbon stored in the trees and soil. This system is expected to allow for the observation, under real-world conditions, of the resilience and evolution of different types of stands in the face of the challenges of climate change, as well as their potential role in protecting groundwater quality.

In line with the awareness-raising objective at the heart of the FORLUX project, the Eecherfeld site will also become a place for discovery and knowledge sharing about trees and forest management. Educational visits can be organised there to illustrate how trees function - their growth, root development, leaf physiology and their interactions with the soil - and to share the results of observations with the general public and primary school pupils.

A reference weather station outside the forest canopy will also be installed on the site. It will allow for the integration of meteorological measurements necessary for estimating a complete water balance for the forests of Luxembourg City, as well as qualitative parameters related to atmospheric deposition, an important source of nutrients for forest ecosystems.

The VdL recalled that FORLUX is a multi-year project funded by Luxembourg's Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity through the Climate and Energy Fund. It aims to assess the resilience of municipal forests to the major climate disturbances observed over the past five years and to support the adaptation of forest management to current and future weather conditions. The project notably contributes to a better understanding of the interaction between forest health, water resources and carbon resilience. Bringing together researchers from LIST, forest managers - namely the VdL and the ANF - and citizens, the project pursues a threefold objective: to quantify and anticipate the response of forests to climate change, to develop adaptation strategies for forest management, and to raise awareness and involve citizens in forest preservation.