Smart City Dortmund: Digitalization of tree care using our Sensors
The city of Dortmund is breaking new ground in digital urban greening. As part of the Smart City strategy, a data-based monitoring of the city's trees will be launched from 2025, supported by our TreeSense crown moisture sensors. The aim is to make irrigation more efficient, sustainable and resource-saving.
Dortmund is thus relying on digital technologies to actively tackle the challenges of climate change: long periods of drought, rising temperatures and limited resources require a rethink in tree maintenance.
Why crown moisture measurement in Dortmund?
Dortmund is characterized by heterogeneous soil conditions, which make it difficult to determine the water requirements of the trees solely via the soil moisture. For this reason, the city decided to measure the moisture directly in the foliage in the model project.
Our crown moisture Sensors measure the water balance of the trees where it really counts: on the leaves themselves. From 2025, local tree experts will be able to use an urban data platform to precisely track when and how much water a tree actually needs.
The advantage:
Thanks to precise data, irrigation can be targeted, eliminating the need for watering "by feel." The optimized use of water can achieve savings of up to 30 %, avoiding unnecessary trips. At the same time, the trees benefit from a needs-based supply, even during heatwaves, which strengthens their health in the long term.
Work scheduling also becomes more efficient: Local tree experts can react in a targeted manner instead of acting on suspicion. In practice, we use a visual traffic light system via our Cloud: Green signals that no irrigation is necessary, yellow calls for observation as the moisture values are falling, and red indicates that it is time to water. In this way, tree health is ensured in an efficient and data-driven manner.
From testing to monitoring: An overview of the pilot project
The Smart City department of Dortmund and the Parks and Green Spaces department, together with us, will install 20 Sensors on selected young trees to test the potential of digital tree irrigation.
The project goes through several crucial phases: In the onboarding phase, the participants jointly define the project goals and integrate the Sensors into the city's LoRaWAN network. This is followed by installation & training, where the Sensors are attached and the local tree experts are trained in the use of the new technology. The use of the sensor data is continuously optimized through regular jour fixes. Finally, initial data is evaluated and the next steps for tree monitoring in 2025 are planned.
A special technical highlight: The recorded sensor data is seamlessly integrated into the city's open source data platform. This allows Dortmund to analyze and reuse the data independently at any time, without external dependencies.
Smart City Dortmund: A glimpse into the green future
With the start of monitoring, Dortmund will digitally control tree irrigation from this year. The data collected will therefore not only serve the daily work scheduling, but also the long-term strategy development in green space management.
The combination of sensor technology, data analysis and intelligent water management shows how digital Solutions can help to save water, reduce costs and at the same time strengthen the vitality of urban trees.
A project that makes the digitalization of green spaces tangible, for Dortmund and the Smart Cities of tomorrow.
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