baumzaehlen - Primeval Forests & Their Trees

Petkeljärvi National Park , Finland

This park has light Pinus sylvestris (Scots pine) forests on glacial sand depositions (eskers) and lovely lakes.

The majority of the park’s trees are about 25-metre P. sylvestris regenerated around 1850 after wildfires ¹ . On dry sand soils in eastern Finland, wildfires have occurred at 50-year intervals up to the twentieth century, though some of the fires have been set by man ² . In fact, P. sylvestris is the most fire-tolerant tree in the Eurasian boreal forests ³ . However, its cones are not serotinous like cones of the North American species P. banksiana (jack pine) and P. contorta (lodgepole pine) ⁴ .

There are about ten tree species altogether, most of which are very easy to identify. Annual precipitation is approx. 600 mm, average annual temperature 1–2°C and elevations from 145 (lake level) to approx. 165 m.

Although small (6 km ² ) and surrounded by managed forests and clearcut areas, the park is remote and tranquil. Between Kuikkalampi and Joutenjärvi there are patches of former slash-and-burn agriculture areas; they can be identified by their more abundant broadleaf trees ¹ . Old cut stumps can be seen in some places. The park still has traces of some WW2 emplacements and trenches, although no fighting took place within its boundaries ¹ . Camping is only allowed at the campground.

References:

1 http://www.nationalparks.fi/

2 Parviainen, J. et al. (1999): Research in Forest Reserves and Natural Forests in European Countries . EFI Proceedings No. 16, 1999.

3 Agee, J. K. (1998): Fire and pine ecosystems. In Richardson, D. M. (ed.): Ecology and Biogeography of Pinus. Cambridge.

4 Shorohova, E., Kneeshaw, D., Kuuluvainen, T. & Gauthier, S. (2011): Variability and Dynamics of Old-Growth Forests in the Circumboreal Zone: Implications for Conservation, Restoration and Management . Silva Fennica 45 (5).

Official site:

http://www.nationalparks.fi/en/petkeljarvinp