Dr. Jörg Kunz

Jörg Kunz

Dr. Jörg Kunz

Organizational Unit(s):Department of Urban Horticulture and Plant Use Professorship for Ornamental Plant Research & Urban Horticulture

Contact:
Phone: +49 6722 502 538
eMail: Joerg.Kunz(at)hs-gm.de

Postal Address:Von-Lade-Straße 1
D-65366 Geisenheim

Address: Building 1000
Room 318
Von-Lade-Straße 2
65366 Geisenheim

Schwarz J., Skiadaresis G., Kohler M., Kunz J., Schnabel F., Vitali V., Bauhus J. (2020): Quantifying Growth Responses of Trees to Drought-a Critique of Commonly Used Resilience Indices and Recommendations for Future Studies. Current forestry reports 6 S. 185 - 200. DOI: 10.1007/s40725-020-00119-2

Pyttel P., Kunz J., Grossmann J. (2019): Growth of Sorbus torminalis after release from prolonged suppression. Trees - Structure and Function 33 S. 1549 - 1557. DOI: 10.1007/s00468-019-01877-8

Kohler M., Kunz J., Herrmann J., Hartmann P., Jansone L., Puhlmann H., von Wilpert K., Bauhus J. (2019): The Potential of Liming to Improve Drought Tolerance of Norway Spruce [Picea abies (L.) Karst.]. Frontiers in Plant Science 10 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2019.00382

Kunz J., Loffler G., Bauhus J. (2018): Minor European broadleaved tree species are more drought-tolerant than Fagus sylvatica but not more tolerant than Quercus petraea. Forest ecology and management 414 S. 15 - 27. DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2018.02.016

Walentowski H., Falk W., Mette T., Kunz J., Brauning A., Meinardus C., Zang C., Sutcliffe L., Leuschner C. (2017): Assessing future suitability of tree species under climate change by multiple methods: a case study in southern Germany. Annals of forest research 60 (1) S. 101 - 126. DOI: 10.15287/afr.2016.789

Kunz J., Rader A., Bauhus J. (2016): Effects of Drought and Rewetting on Growth and Gas Exchange of Minor European Broadleaved Tree Species. Forests 7 (10) DOI: 10.3390/f7100239

Pyttel P., Kunz J., Bauhus J. (2013): Growth, regeneration and shade tolerance of the Wild Service Tree (Sorbus torminalis (L.) Crantz) in aged oak coppice forests. Trees - Structure and Function 27 S. 1609 - 1619. DOI: 10.1007/s00468-013-0908-7

BIOCHAR-MACADAM URBAN-GREEN SUBSTRATES AS CLIMATE ADAPTATION AND MITIGATION STRATEGY - Knowledge transfer, competence building and practical application for mitigating the heat island effect and for managing heavy rainfall events in urban areas

Project start: 01.07.2023
Project end: 30.06.2026
Sponsor: Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und nukleare Sicherheit

The preservation and planting of urban green, especially trees, play a crucial role in the adaptation of cities to global heating, as they provide natural cooling. Larger trees transpire up to 500 litres of water per day. Shade and evaporative cooling reduce the effect of urban heat islands. However, road salt, soil compaction and pollutants stress urban trees. Heat and drought intensify, so that new plantings often fail to grow and existing trees increasingly die before they reach a size that has an impact on the city's climate. Alternative tree substrates could provide a remedy, and also improve the infiltration of water from heavy rainfall events. One promising approach are biochar macadam substrates (PMS), i.e. defined mixtures of rock gravel, plant charcoal and compost. After compaction, the crushed stone results in a passable but pore-rich structure that creates space and aaeration for root growth and which are capable of absorbing high levels of precipitation. The production of the biochar also locks up biomass carbon over decades to millennia (=carbon sinks, i.e. carbon (dioxide) removal). PMS were developed in Stockholm and are so far only used in Sweden, Austria and Switzerland. The goal of "Black2GoGreen" is to create a network of municipalities, municipal enterprises, associations as well as manufacturers of biochar and biochar (tree, green-roof) substrates to transfer knowledge about already implemented solutions to Germany.