Getting fit for climate change: conversion to a forest of the future
Created: 07/02/2022 09:09
By: Andreas Daschner
The forest should be made fit for climate change.
© picture alliance / dpa
How do you make the forest fit for climate change?
The “Grafrath climate-friendly” initiative is currently dealing with this question.
The most important finding: there is no way around converting the spruce stands.
Grafrath – Forest farmers should urgently tear themselves away from the pure spruce forest.
That was the advice of the forest expert Michael Rampp from the Bavarian Forest Administration at the first meeting of the initiative's working group in the town hall.
Around 20 forest owners, hunters and interested parties had gathered.
According to Rampp, even the most recent storms have shown that spruce forests are getting big problems: "The stocks are being completely shaved," he observed.
In mixed forests, at least 30 to 40 percent of the deciduous tree population would remain.
It is also becoming increasingly difficult for the spruce in terms of climate.
The reason: less and less precipitation, more and more hot days.
The annual average rainfall fell from 978 millimeters in the years 1961 to 1990 to just over 942 millimeters in the years 1991 to 2020. During the same period, the average temperature rose from 7.9 to 8.8 degrees, the number of hot days from four to almost nine.
Getting away from monocultures
(
By the way: Everything from the region is now also available in our regular
FFB newsletter.)
Conditions that the spruce is less and less able to cope with, especially as the values will probably continue to deteriorate in the opinion of the expert.
His advice: "We urgently need to move away from monocultures and towards a strong mix of tree species." Well suited for the future climate are, for example, the English oak, the service tree, the wild cherry and, in some cases, the silver fir.
However, Rampp advises against larches.
Reduce deer populations
Monika Glammert-Zwölfer from the initiative pointed out that deciduous trees are more likely to be browsed by animals: "Here, cooperation between forest owners and hunters is important." that we have the chance to get at least part of the trees through.” Wehr dismissed concerns that this would endanger the deer population.
"The deer are doing well." This generally leads to an increasing population.
"You can't eradicate the deer, and nobody wants to."
High recreational pressure on forests
Other problems for the forests were also discussed.
For example, the high leisure pressure.
The participants saw rubbish and criss-crossing mountain bikers as just as dangerous for the forest as people who drive into the forest in their cars to go jogging or walk their dogs.
also read
125 years Gasthaus Haderecker: The inn sisters invite you to the ball
More and more private jets over Germering - Oberpfaffenhofen "number one among insiders"
The initiative wants to continue to work on how to convert it into a forest of the future, taking all these problems into account.
In smaller working groups, topics such as hunting, the risk of cultivation for forest farmers, and public relations are considered.
You can find more current news from the district of Fürstenfeldbruck at Merkur.de/Fürstenfeldbruck.