Market of Activities

10. Exploring the forest science

Presenter: Dagnija Lazdiņa (Senior researcher, Latvian State Forest Research Institute "Silava")

Description: We all know that you can find all kinds of trees in whe forest, but did you know that only the best of them are used for regeneration of the forest? Scientists choose the best trees from which to harvest the seeds used for planting the new forest. This is what they call “selection”.

The participants of this workshop stepped into scientist’s shoes the same as Latvian 6th graders do while learning about forest science during annual LVM Forest Expeditions for schools. During one of the tasks, participants had to use the criteria created by LSFRI “Silava” and pick the trees best suited for selection puropeses. But the scientific process didn't stop there! There are ways to improve forest soil and participants had to use test strips to determine which soil sample would be best suited for successful tree growth.