Debrecen4U May 27, 2026

Urban Vegetation Receives Extra Attention Due to Heat and Drought

The heat and lack of rainfall are putting Debrecen’s urban vegetation under serious strain, so around 6,000 young trees are watered on a weekly basis, while newly planted evergreens and flowerbeds are also receiving special care by specialists. In the intense heat, water tankers and automatic irrigation systems are helping to keep the plants alive.

The summer heat is testing newly planted evergreens. The plants next to the playground in the Vénkert district are watered regularly so that they can strengthen and survive despite the prolonged heat and dry conditions. However, specialists are not only caring for this area: efforts are also being made at several points across the housing estate to refresh the environment.

A 6,000-litre water tanker is continuously travelling around the city these days. Thorough watering of the flowerbed in Bem Square, for example, requires nearly 500 litres of water. Newly planted saplings along Péterfia Street, the inner ring road and Simonyi Road are also receiving particular attention.

Around 1,000 young trees, oak and ornamental cherry, have been planted throughout the city centre and are protected with special watering bags that can hold between 50 and 100 litres of water and gradually release it at the base of the tree over five to six days.

In addition to manual watering, automatic irrigation systems at several locations in the city centre are also helping to reduce the effects of drought. Although there was snowfall in January, the winter overall was dry, and spring also brought insufficient rainfall. As a result, public green spaces in Debrecen have been watered since 20 April.

“– “Through irrigation we can somewhat ease the water shortage in the upper layers of the soil, but atmospheric drought is also placing plants under significant stress. It is therefore not uncommon for plants to defend themselves by reducing the surface area used for evaporation, meaning that the edges of their leaves dry out and curl up,” explained Orsolya Hamecz, Head of the Green Areas Department. According to specialists, this is a natural response to prolonged heat, and once the weather becomes milder, the plants can begin developing again.

Source and photo credit: dehir.hu