Beech common garden experiments

Beech common garden experiment Hackenberg, Effretikon

At this forest site established in November 2025, we are growing about 450 F. sylvatica saplings from all across Europe. After germinating in 2024 in a nursery at the University of Zurich, these small saplings were transplanted into the ground in November 2025.

Photos: Meredith Schuman, 2025

Beech common garden experiment Irchel, Zurich

At this experimental site on campus, established in 2023, we are growing about 190 F. sylvatica saplings from all across Europe. After germinating in 2021, the saplings grew in pots for four years before being transplanted into the ground at the experimental garden in November 2025.

NIR drone photo shortly after transplantation in the ground. The trees are arranged in a grid with 0.9 m distance between each other. We created two diversity levels, low genetic diversity and higher genetic diversity, which are represented in smaller blocks of nine trees.

Photo: Meredith Schuman

Drone photo of the beech common garden experiment in 2023, when the sapling were still growing in pots. The pots were arranged in a randomized block design for a drought experiment.

Photo: Nicole Manser