Avisa Nordland – As a result, the forest is so brown this year

It was a winter characterized by dry and cold weather, and a lot of TV in the ground. This in combination with the sunny and warm days in autumn and spring causes the green growth of winter to start the growing season too early. He writes the county governor in Nordland on his own web pages.

– Sunlit needles begin to sweat without available water. The result is drying up, explains the head of the county coalition.

– Low night temperatures form ice crystals in the wood tissues, damaged by frost.

Damage worsens

Low humidity and wind aggravate damage. Growth that is covered with snow will prevent the frost from drying out, but along the coast, there is relatively little snow and you can also see some damage to the heather and eather. The damage can be directed by direction relative to wind and sun.

– We can draw parallels with what we do in our own garden, for example, Thuja. We do not want the tree to start growing as long as it is tilted in the ground (or pot) and it often bundles in sneakers or the like to protect against sunlight in the after-sea .

Sjørokk symptoms. The reason is that the salt is attached to the bar and, with the water, releases the chlorine ions that enter the cells. Sitkagran is very resistant to this type of damage, says Sund.

Is this the case all over the country?

– We know that there is some amount of drying gel on the forests of Namdalen and northern Nordland. In 2014, there was a lot of freezing in Trøndelag and in the south.

Will the forest return to normal?

– Einer is a very hardy species that is found in the north of the country as a low shrub, and often in larger areas of shrubs. If you look closely, you will probably see that there are still green needles and signs of life inside the scrub. Most often it's over, but it can take a few years.

Trees with entire brown crowns can die, but often there are latent buds that can build a new barmasse over a few years. Partially brown trees will probably survive, but they are weakened and more vulnerable to diseases and insect attacks.

Increased risk of forest fire

Does this have any other consequences?

– In areas where there is a lot of dried heather and heather, there may be an increased risk of forest fire. Gel drying is not covered by forest insurance schemes or the Norwegian Natural Disaster Management System. Comprehensive damage can be reported to municipalities and registered on the NIBIO website, skogskader.no, says Geir Einar Sund.