January is the perfect time to talk about ‘Bucket Lists’. Mine is to visit as many different environments, sometimes called “ecosystems”, as possible. This past September, 2017, my husband David, our daughter Elizabeth and I and went to the last primal forest left in Europe, The Bialowieza Primal Forest in Poland. In preparation for this trip, David and I studied Polish at the Polish Language School in Salem for three hours every Saturday for two years. To gain entry into this extremely valued and highly guarded forest, one has to hire a trained Polish guide. The simple definition of a primal forest is a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance. Sometimes it is referred to as an ‘old growth forest’. The Bialowieza Primal Forest is at least 8,000 years old and is the last remaining tract of primal forests that once stretched across the European plain. Its environmental importance is such that in 1976 it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The forest in Poland is 547 square miles with another 835 square miles in Belarus, Poland’s neighbor on its eastern border. The forest is so dense that for most of its history only river travel was possible through this area. In the 14th century the Polish kings and later the Russian czars made this forest their private hunting grounds and excluded everyone else. This is the reason it exists today. The key to the uniqueness of a primal forest is that it is one of the last environments on our planet that is completely unmanaged by humans. Its ecological features include a multiple layered canopy, diverse tree species and intact soil. The richness of its soil is evident in a healthy fungal ecosystem. One of the highlights of this trip was the incredible number and astounding variety of mushrooms we saw everywhere we went! Another necessary feature of a primal forest is that at least 50% of its wood is in different conditions of decay. In managed forests it is only about 5%. This high level of decay contributes to a high amount of carbon rich organic matter that is responsible for the healthy substrate of moss, fungi, seedlings and micro- organisms in the soil, all which supports an abundance of plants. Open canopy gaps due to death of trees, forest fires and other natural occurring events in the forest provide the opportunity for new growth and regeneration of trees and other plant species. It is the reason that a primal forest has healthy mixed-aged stands of trees. We were awed by the sizes of trees including oaks and ashes that had attained the ripe old age of 500 to 1,000 years old! They were the guardians of the forest and their presence was imposing, mystical and magical. The primal forest provides food and shelter to a unique blend of animal species that we rarely see in our country because our woods and national parks are managed. Here live wolves, lynx, deer, moose, wild boar, many small animal species and the European Bison which is Europe’s largest land animal . This is an environment where only the strongest survive and the numbers of all animal species are kept in check and balance by a healthy population of predator animals and a healthy population of prey animals. We were there in September and were constantly serenaded by the sounds of bellowing male moose in search of a mate. It was both an eerie and delightful sound. Throughout the world, the last few primal forests are rapidly disappearing today due to logging, mining for metals and converting the land into farms or developments. This is tragic because their ecological value is priceless. Primal forests provide habitat to threatened, rare and endangered animal, plant, bird and insect species. Their rich soils provide unmatched water retention, water purification, and nutrient recycling. They provide an invaluable source of oxygen production while at the same time sequestering carbon. 35% of our last remaining primal forests are the rain forests of Brazil, Ecuador and Peru. The old growth and boreal forest of Alaska and Canada comprise another 28%. The paradise forests of Asian Pacific countries hold another 7%. The forests in all of these counties are losing thousands of acres a day due to human demands and activities. Primal forests are an absolutely necessary component for our planet and are part of the ‘Web of Life’. Their presence and the innumerable services they offer, is essential for a healthy planet and for the survival of all living species including humans. And then there is the “awe” factor. Where else can we humans experience Nature, untainted by human interference, in her full, majestic magnificence? This is one of the last environments left on our planet where all of its components, including trees, plants, animals, birds, insects, even soil microorganisms, get to live to their fullest potential! That is both a rarity and a marvel. To walk in such an environment is simply put, wonder-full!
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AuthorConsultant, designer and educator transforming commercial and residential landscapes sustainably Archives
March 2023
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