Inte bara näverhägg: sammanställning av odlingserfarenheter kring träd och buskar för ett nordligt klimat

Shrubs and trees essential for urban suitability given that they provide a wide range of important ecosystems services, if they are used in the right way and at the right place. To enable such adequate usage, a deep understanding of different species requirement and performance in shifting environments is necessary. Additionally, a wide diversity of different species is needed since it enables site matching of suitable species for different contexts and functions, while also providing an insurance against future problems like climate change and severe pests. For northern Sweden the diversity of woody species is naturally restricted by the colder climate but also due to a horticultural focus towards the south, both within research and practice. Taken together this highlights the need for a deeper knowledge about winter-hardy and functional species for northern Sweden, not a least to reduce the risk of over-usage of some few species. There are nonetheless several knowledgeable plant users in the north both in Sweden, Finland and Norway. This project has aimed to identify these plant users and collect their insight of valuable plants for growing in a northern climate. Using literature, arboreta’s, nursery catalogues and databases a list of possible hardy species was compiled and then reviewed by the identified plant users concerning their winter hardiness and horticultural value. The compiled information of the study provides a guide of possible and potential species for growing in northern Sweden, but for actual implementation, site specific and detailed species evaluations will be needed to tailor the species for the given context.