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This report communicates initial results from establishment of the Carl von Linné arboretum, developed within in an existing urban woodland in Växjö, Sweden. The project started shortly after the woodland being severely storm damaged, allowing us to test establishment methods bridging ecological and aesthetic considerations. A high number of different microhabitats created by remnants of existing vegetation, differences in soil conditions and other factors such as how people moved in the area, demanded for and inspired an adaptive and place-based design approach. Instead of a conventional planting plan created indoors, the design was developed in field step-by-step. Many hundreds of coloured bamboo sticks were used to enable a hands-on design for over 5000 plants, all of them afterwards mapped and inventoried. The inventory data concerning plant vitality was analysed using mixed ordinal logistic regressions in relation to vegetation structure, soil moisture and microenvironments. Further, the relation between global stress values of shade, drought and waterlogging and hardiness classification, was explored for practical guidance of matching species to the different establishment situations. The analysis showed that both vegetation structure and soil moisture and to some extent microenvironments influenced the vitality of planted species. The bamboo stick method is therefore considered suitable for this kind of adaptive design of urban woodlands since it allows designers and managers to adjust on site to all these factors affecting the establishment. In lack of more detailed species information, horticultural hardiness zones and global stress values can give some directions of species site requirements. In relation to this, we conclude that the need for integrating design, monitoring and management continually over time is central for successful adaptive design of urban woodlands.