Emergency felling and removal of dead wood Loosbos
During a recent tree safety check in the Loosbos, it was noted that a number of older trees are suddenly dying off at a rapid rate or are even already dead. A number of trees are also seriously weakened by age, rot and/or fungal attack. Since the forest is heavily frequented by hikers, due to possible danger it was decided to immediately cut down the dead and affected trees along the paths and plot boundaries.
Susceptible to drought and heat
The Loosbos is an old forest consisting mainly of beech trees. The oldest trees are about 100 years old and have suffered a lot from the hot and dry summers especially in recent years. Because beeches root flat, they are very sensitive to periods of drought and heat. The moment they face water shortages, they react by producing smaller leaves. The sun then gets more free play, through the otherwise closed canopy. If the drought hits harder, the leaves wilt and the first branches of the crown die. The trunk allows moisture to pass through and the first bark sheets come off. Bark beetles, wood beetles and fungi then step in and they are the ones who finish the job. Many factors at once then become fatal to the tree.
Weakened beeches discolor, even on the trunk. Branches break off or trees fall over spontaneously. Once holes develop in the foliage above a beech forest and trees are exposed to the sun, they burn, so to speak.
This process of dying off can develop, as it does now in the Loosbos, in a matter of months.
Resilient and climate-resilient forest.
It is expected that, due to climate change, more beeches may die off in the near future. When this happens, for the sustainable preservation of the forest, open spaces will be replanted. When choosing the new tree species to be planted, trees more resistant to warmer and drier climates will be chosen, such as tree hazel, sessile oak, sweet cherry and winter lime.
Emergency hood
Because of the potential danger, removal of the dangerous trees and dead wood will begin as early as tomorrow. Prior to and during the execution of the work, work will be carried out according to the Code of Careful Forest Management, so that raptor nests, woodpecker (nest) trees, ant nests, burrows, rare flora will be spared and can be spared.
The work will be completed within a few days.
The execution of the work will be supervised by Bosgroep Zuid Nederland.
Contact information
For more general information, please contact,
Mr. S. Leclair at e-mail:gemeentehuis@kerkrade.nl or phone number 14045
For information on implementation, please contact Bosgroep Zuid Nederland,
Mr. J.C.J. Truijen via e-mail: j.truijen@bosgroepzuid.nl