Big news: We are going to plant trees together with the local government of Costa Rica! - Adopteer Regenwoud
Big news: We are going to plant trees together with the local government of Costa Rica!

Big news: We are going to plant trees together with the local government of Costa Rica!

In July we told about the expansion of Adopt Rainforest’s reserve through the purchase of 48.5 acres of land. This parcel is very important because it forms a land bridge between the foundation’s current reserve and Barbilla National Park. Much of the new plot is existing forest, but there are also several acres of pasture land. To make the connecting zone even more attractive to animal species from the Barbilla National Park, we are going to reforest these pastures.

Jaguar Tree

Locals call the recently acquired area “Palo Tigre.” This means “Jaguar tree.” In fact, on this plot there is a tree with several jaguar markings on the trunk. How cool: This tree is used as a scratching post by the Jaguar!

Cooperation with the local government

Quite soon after purchasing the new plot, we were approached by the Costa Rican government (SINAC). They needed to plant 10,000 trees to compensate for the widening of the highway between San José and Limon. Palo Tigre would be a perfect location to carry out this project. The foundation regularly has good contact with SINAC for different conservation initiatives. Thus, our good rapport created a new collaboration. The Costa Rican government, together with the coordinating party CCT ( Tropical Science Center) and the local team from the Indian reservation that we trained last year will plant the trees. This will provide additional employment again this year.

Planting trees with a scientific design

Professor Edwin Pos of Utrecht University also heard of the plan to plant trees, and suggested that it be done according to a specific research design, with the goal of studying ecological succession in tropical forests. The effects of density and diversity on tree growth and interaction will be examined. This information will help to decide with how many trees of which species the most natural and diverse forest is generetad, and thus how to make reforestation projects in the tropics successful in the most efficient and effective way possible.

Why is this research needed?

A deforested area, if left completely alone, eventually becomes forest by itself, however, this takes an incredibly long time because of the often present stiff grass where tree seeds have difficulty germinating. Planting trees accelerates this process, but purchasing and planting trees is costly. Also, large quantities of native tree species for planting are not always available. Experts believe that if areas are partially planted, the empty spaces in between will develop naturally, ultimately creating a more diverse forest for less money. Win-win, in other words.

What we ultimately want to know is how many trees of which species we can best plant, and how big the empty spaces should be to get the best effect. Professor Edwin Pos of Utrecht University has devised an innovative experimental research design where this can be figured out.

Something to be proud of

Thus the new plot is not only an important bridge between the reserve and the National Park, but also an opportunity for scientific research. It also provides additional local involvement and employment and we are working with various parties on a beautiful form of nature restoration. We can all be quite proud of that!

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