Thun shines in vibrant colours.

Thun in a sea 
of flowers

The days are getting longer, the sun warms the city and flowers are blossoming everywhere. Parks are filling up again, children’s laughter can be heard on the playgrounds, couples are strolling along the lakeside promenade and anyone taking a break in one of the old town’s many cafés will notice the carefully tended flower boxes decorating the railings. To ensure that Thun's flora shines in new splendour every spring, a dedicated team from the city is hard at work. Take a look behind the scenes with us and discover Thun’s sea of flowers.

English

Rest from the hustle and bustle of the city can be found in the nearby parks and along the waterfront promenade, where trees provide welcoming shade. For centuries, trees have symbolised protection, reliability, and strength. Deeply rooted in the ground and steadfast, they can bring peace and relaxation, something that the city of Thun appreciates too.

 

The city of Thun is responsible for approximately 6 000 public trees. This primarily involves caring for the trees to ensure their preservation and protection. Maintenance includes pruning, planting, and recording the trees in a digital tree archive, but also felling. If trees are felled, they are immediately replaced with new plantings at the same location or replanted at another spot, suitable for the tree.

The Scherzligschleuse is one of two locks in the Thun city centre.

Flowers are usually given as a token of affection, in Thun they adorn the city as a symbol of love – for the city, its residents and its visitors. In about 350 flower boxes, 40 large contai­ners, and 20 flower beds, they add cheerful splashes of colour to streets, bridges and squares, subtly brightening up the everyday lives of passers-by. «Stadtgrün Thun» plants new flowers several times a year, depending on the season, and designs the entirety of the floral arrangements according to a changing colour scheme.

Thun in bloom during spring and summer.

Eissstockschiessen auf dem Thuner Mühleplatz.

When planting the flowers, the city of Thun not only pays attention to aesthetics, but also attaches great importance to biodiversity and climate. To ensure that the flowers can be enjoyed for as long as possible, both by people and animals such as bees and insects, beneficial organisms are used instead of insecticides. These small, barely visi­ble creatures destroy pests and can thus eliminate aphid colonies or spider mites, that infest flowers, in an environmentally friendly way.

 

In Thun, plants can not only be found in parks and flower boxes but also on roundabouts. Because biodiversity and safety are important to the city, there are no seasonally changing flowers on the roundabouts as there are in the flower boxes. Instead, the city uses mainly native, tall plants that bloom all year round. This makes the roundabouts safer, more attractive for wildlife, and less cost and time consuming to maintain.

Editorial

Whether during the crocus bloom in early spring or in summer, combined with a dip in the cool water: a visit to Schadau and Bonstetten parks, with their impressive tree populations and ever-changing display of blossoms, is always well
worth it. These carefully designed spaces create a sense of identity and invite you to linger. Speaking of which: very soon, the colourful floral displays at the locks, along the Aare quay and in Obere Hauptgasse will once again characterise Thun’s townscape. Year after year, locals and visitors alike enjoy them.
Through the municipal biodiversity concept, we are specifically promoting species diversity. Projects for orchids, wild bees and small mammals demonstrate the value of nature-friendly management. At the same time, Thun continues to grow: new neighbourhoods and public spaces are being developed. Our aim is to harmonise the needs of nature and people – so that everyone benefits.

A fine testament to the quality of our waterways and green spaces is the beaver, which clearly feels at home in our city.

I wish you a «bäumigen» spring!

Reto Schertenleib
Gemeinderat
Vorsteher Direktion Bau & Liegenschaften