Atlas of Tree City Delft

Delft is a city of trees. They total more than 100,000, almost as many as there are humans living in the city. And just as a forest is more than a collection of plants, together these trees form a diverse and multi-faceted network: an ‘urban forest mosaic’. The many facets of the urban forest mosaic of Delft are revealed in this atlas, through maps, analyses, images and text. It offers an in-depth analysis of the history of Delft trees.

Where, why and by whom were trees planted in the past 500 years? What kind of ‘wooded city’ emerged in different periods, and what does that say about Delft and its inhabitants today? The atlas also examines these centuries of planting and caring for the trees of Delft with the concept of ‘tree language’.

What spatial language does Delft speak with its tree species, planting types and tree structures? What is the vocabulary, syntax and structure of its ‘urban forest mosaic’? And how does this language relate to where trees stand and the kinds of urban spaces and experiential environments they create?

The urban forest mosaic can be seen as an alternative wooded ‘fingerprint’ of the city. It presents a new way of looking at how trees in all their different configurations, scales and relationships determine urban structure, identity and life, and what this means for understanding and shaping cities such as Delft in the future.

The Atlas of Tree City Delft tells a new story about the city and takes fans and advocates of urban forests on a voyage of discovery.