From industrial harbour city to international model city for urban greening. In late May 2026, Malmö will host the European Forum on Urban Forestry (EFUF), Europe’s leading event on trees and urban greening. That is no coincidence. Few cities have worked as consistently toward a green future over the past decades as Malmö.
Anyone walking through Malmö immediately notices that something special is happening here. Trees you would normally only encounter in arboreta can be found throughout streets, squares and parks. Patrick Bellan, landscape architect and tree specialist for the City of Malmö, recently gave an inspiring presentation on the city’s unique approach to biodiversity, tree management and climate-resilient greening.
Patrick Bellan presenting at Symposium Tree Selection
Why Malmö Stands Out
While many cities still approach greening as a series of isolated projects, Malmö treats green infrastructure as a structural part of the city. Trees are not decoration, but infrastructure — just as relevant as roads, water systems and mobility. They provide cooling, capture rainwater, improve air quality and make neighbourhoods more attractive and healthier.
This is reflected in the way Malmö sets goals. The city was one of the first European municipalities to embrace the now well-known 3-30-300 rule:
- a view of 3 trees from every home
- working toward 30% tree canopy cover
- a maximum distance of 300 metres to public green space
Crown coverage per city block. Image: Patrick Bellan
Measuring Instead of Talking
One of Malmö’s strengths is that greening is made measurable. In July 2024, the city’s total tree canopy cover was measured at 15.6%. Not yet 30%, but with approximately 13.8 million m² of canopy area, it is already about halfway toward that ambition.
The figures are also broken down by neighbourhood. Some districts score above 30%, while others remain below 5%. This reveals where residents have relatively little shade, few trees and limited access to green space.
Urban greening therefore also becomes a matter of environmental justice: investing where the need is greatest.
Halfway to 30%. Image: Patrick Bellan
Grönare Möllan: Greening Where It Is Most Difficult
This can be clearly seen in Grönare Möllan, a project in the compact and multicultural district of Möllevången. Not a spacious suburban area with wide verges, but a dense inner-city neighbourhood where almost every square metre is already in use.
Here, Malmö invests in new trees, rainwater solutions and improved growing conditions by using limited space intelligently. With the planting of 150 climate-adapted trees, canopy cover in Möllevången increased from 8% to 12%.
Projects like this may be even more relevant than large city parks. The greatest gains are often found in the everyday street — where people walk, cycle, wait and spend time.
Guided tree walk in Grönare Möllan. Image: Patrick Bellan
The Lesson of Dutch Elm Disease
Another important aspect of Malmö’s progressive tree policy did not arise from luxury, but from necessity. In the 1980s, the city lost more than 33,000 trees to Dutch elm disease. A quarter of all street trees disappeared. It became clear how vulnerable a one-sided tree population can be.
Since then, Malmö has consciously chosen diversity and has worked since 2000 with the 10-20-30 rule. No single species should become too dominant. Today, the city has more than 900 species and cultivars. Within the genus Quercus alone, more than 100 varieties are present.
As a result, Malmö has not only become greener, but also more resilient to climate change, pests and diseases.
Malmö does not have an arboretum — the city is an arboretum. In so-called arboretum alleys, species are deliberately mixed. Patrick Bellan described it well: “If you are dropped into Malmö, you should be able to understand where you are from the vegetation.”
Example cross-section and design of an arboretum avenue. Image: Patrick Bellan
A Tree in a Park Is Different from a Tree in the Street
Malmö actively studies which species perform well in which locations and has built an extensive database for this purpose. Some species grow better in park environments, while others thrive in paved areas, heat and urban stress.
That may sound obvious, but tree policy is still often approached too generically. Malmö shows that understanding site conditions is at least as important as planting more trees.
There is also an interesting climate perspective. Sweden’s macroclimate may not always suit every species, but Malmö’s warmer urban microclimate often does — and likely increasingly so.
Malmö uses around 300 species and cultivars in paved urban environments, and more than 800 in parks and green spaces.
Most common tree species per site. Image: Patrick Bellan
The Infrastructure Behind the Greenery
What also sets Malmö apart is the strong technical foundation behind its greening policy. The city has developed an extensive species list for paved urban locations with more than 400 taxa, including information on drought tolerance, site suitability, size and availability.
New planting sites must provide at least 30 m³ of root volume. Biochar is used as standard practice. In addition, technical standards and detailed drawings exist for different types of planting sites.
All of this knowledge is coordinated by Trädgruppen, an internal tree working group of around 40 staff members from different municipal departments. They work in three committees on technical guidelines, tree planning and public engagement.
This may be the least visible, yet most crucial part of Malmö’s success: a strong internal network that safeguards knowledge and continuously improves practice.
Arboretumallee. Image: Apelöga
Making Green Visible
Part of the work is made deliberately visible. Through social media, Malmö shares news about new trees, remarkable species and flowering trees. The city also organises the annual Trädmaraton, a walking event along notable trees where residents learn more about urban greenery.
As a result, tree policy is not only technical, but also cultural and socially embedded.
Smart Greening in Nyhamnen: Living Lab on Former Harbour Land
Even more ambitious is what Malmö is doing in Nyhamnen, a former ferry and harbour area on the waterfront. A new district is being created here where greenery is used as a structural framework from the very beginning.
Because traditional planting is difficult in polluted and hardened ground, Malmö is using smart and circular solutions with modular planting systems, reused materials and flexible growing spaces.
The project also functions as a living lab within the European ARCADIA programme, where researchers study how tree species in different substrates cope with heat, wind and urban conditions, while residents are actively involved in design and management.
Why Malmö Matters to Other Cities
Many European cities face the same challenges: heat, densification, flooding and public health. Malmö shows that trees are not a side issue, but part of the solution.
The lessons are clear:
- work with measurable goals
- focus on diversity – the city as an arboretum
- distinguish between different growing environments
- use area-specific data to set priorities
- treat every redevelopment as an opportunity for greening, not just decoration but infrastructure
European Forum on Urban Forestry 2026
The 28th European Forum on Urban Forestry takes place this year in the city that has shown how it can be done: Malmö.
Professionals, policymakers and researchers from across Europe will come together to discuss diversity in urban greening.
Theme: Diversity in Urban Forestry — Bringing People, Trees and Ideas Together
Date: 26–29 May 2026
Website: efuf.org
