You can book a behind-the-scenes visit to Ecotron where you will learn a lot about the activities. During our visit, not all ecosystem rooms were occupied and they were busy digging out a piece of land outside. They will start further research there based on findings from UHasselt, where they found that the ecosystems of heathland (including fungi) can retain CO2 well, which is good news. The other rooms will soon be filled with pear trees for other research. In Ecotron you will also receive information about these projects and the evolution of our climate based on the measurements and scenarios that are tested there.
On one side, Ecotron looks like a kind of mirror and blends into the landscape. The domes are made of Teflon. As a result, they have never had to be cleaned. The Teflon lets through approximately 80% of the light that is needed for photosynthesis.
For the plants (partly heather and partly pear trees, among other things, together with the soil and vegetation) in the domes, a kind of large flower pots are used that are hoisted up with cables. These are called lysimeters. The evolutions of the soil are tested for which holes are provided and everything is measured with sensors. The photos already give a good idea of what you can expect and what happens in Ecotron.