Skógarkolefni

At least 250 tree rings have been counted in a common juniper tree at Hólasandur land reclamation area which lies jus north of the Lake Mývatn Nature Reserve in North Iceland. That individual plant is therefore the oldest "tree" known to grow in Iceland. Great magnification is needed to count the superthin tree rings of the Icelandic juniper which is very slow-growing.

Do you wonder which might be be the most common tree species in Icelandic commercial forests? The answer to this is among things found in a new publication titled Nordic Forest Statistics 2023. You will also find interesting knowledge such as the fact that although the Nordic countries only account for 1.6% of the world's total forest area, Sweden and Finland contribute 16% of global exports of sawnwood products and paper.

Biochar made from Icelandic thinningwood could be put to good use for long-term carbon sequestration in farmland soil and at the same time increase the quality of the soil and thus the yield. Possibilities for this will be explored in a research project that Skógræktin ? the Icelandic Forest Service (IFS) is currently working on in collaboration with the Agricultural University of Iceland (AUI) and others. Response is awaited to an application for funding costly soil sample analysis, which is vital for the results of the study. The idea is to take extensive soil samples in the project at least the next three to five years.