Karelian forest trees. Karelian forests: description, nature, trees and interesting facts. Coniferous and deciduous trees of Karelia

The vegetation cover of Karelia includes about 1200 species of flowering and vascular spores, 402 species of mosses, many species of lichens and algae. However, a little over 100 species of higher plants and up to 50 species of mosses and lichens have a significant influence on the composition of vegetation. About 350 species have medicinal value, and are listed in the Red Book of the USSR as rare and endangered species in need of protection. Within Karelia, there are boundaries of distribution of a number of species. For example, in the eastern part of the Pudozhsky region there is the western border of the distribution of Siberian larch, in the Kondopozhsky region - the northern border of corydalis, medicinal primrose; the northern limit of the area of ​​the marsh cranberry is located, although in Murmansk region, but not far from the border with Karelia; to the north, only small-fruited cranberries are found.

Forests.
Karelia is located within the subzones of the northern and middle taiga of the taiga zone. The boundary between the subzones runs from west to east somewhat north of the city of Medvezhyegorsk. The northern taiga subzone occupies two thirds, the middle taiga - one third of the republic's area. Forests cover more than half of its territory. The forest is the main biological component of most landscapes in the region.
The main tree species that form the Karelian forests are Scots pine, European spruce (mainly in the middle taiga subzone) and Siberian (mainly in the northern taiga), downy and drooping birch (warty), aspen, gray alder. Spruce European and Siberian in nature easily interbreed and form transitional forms: in the south of Karelia - with a predominance of signs of European spruce, in the north - Siberian spruce. Within the subzone of the middle taiga, in the stands of the main forest-forming species, Siberian larch (south-eastern part of the republic), small-leaved linden, elm, elm, black alder and the pearl of Karelian forests - Karelian birch are found as an admixture.
Depending on the origin, forests are divided into indigenous and derivatives. The first arose as a result of natural development, the second - under the influence of human economic activity or natural catastrophic factors leading to the complete destruction of indigenous forest stands (fires, windfall, etc.) - At present, both primary and secondary forests are found in Karelia. The primary forests are dominated by spruce and pine. Birch forests, aspen forests and gray alder forests were formed mainly under the influence of economic activity, mainly as a result of clear-cutting associated with logging and slash-and-burn agriculture, which was carried out in Karelia until the early 1930s. Forest fires also led to the change of coniferous species by deciduous ones.
According to the forest fund accounting data as of January 1, 1983, forests with a predominance of pine occupy 60%, with a predominance of spruce - 28, birch - 11, aspen and gray alder - 1% of the forested area. However, in the north and in the south of the republic, the ratio of forest stands of different species differs significantly. In the northern taiga subzone, pine forests occupy 76% (in the middle taiga - 40%), spruce forests - 20 (40), birch forests - 4 (17), aspen and alder forests - less than 0.1% (3). The predominance of pine forests in the north is determined by more severe climatic conditions and the widespread distribution of the poor here. sandy soil.
In Karelia, pine forests are found in almost all habitats - from dry on sands and rocks to swampy ones. And only in swamps does pine not form a forest, but is present separately standing trees. However, pine forests are most common on fresh and moderately dry soils - lingonberry and blueberry pine forests occupy 2/3 of the entire area of ​​pine forests.
Indigenous pine forests are of different ages, they usually have two (rarely three) generations of trees, and each generation forms a separate tier in the stand. Pine is photophilous, therefore each new generation of it appears when the density of the crowns of the older generation decreases to 40-50% as a result of the death of trees. Generations usually differ by 100-
150 years. In the course of the natural development of indigenous forest stands, the forest community is not completely destroyed; the new generation has time to form long before the complete death of the old one. At the same time, the average age of a forest stand is never less than 80-100 years. In primary pine forests, birch, aspen, and spruce can be found as an admixture. With natural development, birch and aspen never crowd out pine, while spruce on fresh soils, due to shade tolerance, can gradually seize a dominant position; only in dry and swampy habitats is pine out of competition.

Forest fires play an important role in the life of pine forests in Karelia. Mounted fires, in which almost the entire forest burns and dies, are rare, but ground fires, in which only the living ground cover (lichens, mosses, grasses, shrubs) and forest litter are partially (less often completely) burned out, occur quite often: they practically affect all pine forests on dry and fresh soils.
If crown fires are harmful from an ecological and economic point of view, then the effect of ground fires is ambiguous. On the one hand, by destroying the living ground cover and partially mineralizing the forest litter, they improve the growth of the forest stand and contribute to the appearance of a large amount of pine undergrowth under its canopy. On the other hand, persistent ground fires, in which the living ground cover and forest litter are completely burned, and the surface mineral layer of the soil is actually sterilized, sharply reduce soil fertility and can damage trees.
There is reason to believe that the rare and undersized so-called "clarified" pine forests, especially widespread in the northern part of the republic, owe their origin to multiple stable ground fires. In habitats with fresh and moist soils, ground fires prevent the replacement of pine by spruce: thin-barked, shallow-rooted spruce is easily damaged by fire, while thick-barked, deeper-rooted pine successfully resists it. Over the past 25-30 years, as a result successful fight with forest fires, the scale of replacement of pine by spruce has increased dramatically.

Derivative pine forests that have arisen as a result of economic activity are usually of the same age. The participation of deciduous species and spruce in them can be quite high, up to the replacement of pine by deciduous on rich soils. If undergrowth and spruce thinner are preserved during the felling of plantations, a spruce plantation may form in place of a pine forest. However, both from an economic and environmental point of view, this change is undesirable. Pine forests give more wood, they have more berries and mushrooms, they are more attractive for vacationers. Unlike spruce, pine gives resin. Pine forests are distinguished by the best water protection and soil protection properties. The replacement of pine by spruce can be allowed only on the most fertile soils, where spruce stands are not much inferior to pine forests in terms of productivity and resistance to adverse natural factors (winds, harmful insects, fungal diseases).
The productivity of pine forests in Karelia is much less than in the southern and middle regions of the country, which is largely due to unfavorable soil and climatic conditions. However, this is not the only reason. As mentioned earlier, persistent ground fires not only damage trees, but also reduce soil fertility. In tree stands of different ages, pine is subjected to oppression during the first 20-60 years, which negatively affects its growth until the end of its life.

In primary spruce forests, stands of different ages. As an admixture, pine, birch, aspen can be found in them, less often - gray alder. The share of these species in the composition of the forest stand usually does not exceed 20-30% (by stock).
The processes of decay and restoration in spruce forests of absolutely different ages occur simultaneously and relatively evenly, as a result, the main biometric indicators (composition, wood supply, density, average diameter and height, etc.) of such forest stands fluctuate slightly over time. The state of mobile equilibrium can be disturbed by felling, fire, windblow and other factors.
In spruce forests of different ages, the youngest and smallest trees predominate in terms of the number of trunks, and in terms of stock, trees over 160 years old with a diameter above the average. The crown canopy is discontinuous, jagged, and therefore a significant amount of light penetrates to the soil surface, and here grasses and shrubs are quite numerous.
Thanks to its shade tolerance, spruce firmly holds the territory it occupies. Fires in spruce forests were rare and did not have a significant impact on their lives. Windblows were not observed in stands of different ages.
Derivative spruce forests arose on clearings, or on the so-called "undercuts", as a rule, through a change of species - open spaces were first inhabited by birch, less often by aspen, spruce appeared under their canopy. By 100-120 years, less durable hardwoods died off, and spruce again occupied the previously lost territory. Only about 15% of fellings are restored by spruce without changing species, and mainly in those cases when viable undergrowth and spruce thinner are preserved during felling.

The replacement of spruce by deciduous species during logging is associated with its biological and ecological characteristics. Spruce is afraid of late spring frosts, so in the first years of its life it needs protection in the form of a hardwood canopy; spruce does not get along well with cereals, which disappear after the appearance of birch and aspen; spruce bears fruit relatively rarely (abundant crops of seeds occur every 5-6 years) and grows slowly in the first years of life, so birch and aspen overtake it; finally, spruce occupies mostly rich soils where hardwoods grow most successfully.

Derivative spruce forests are relatively even in age. Under their closed canopy, twilight reigns, the soil is covered with fallen needles, there are few grasses and shrubs, there is practically no viable undergrowth.
Compared to pine, the range of habitats for spruce is considerably narrower. Compared to pine forests, the productivity of spruce forests under similar growing conditions is noticeably lower, and only on rich fresh soils is it approximately the same (by the age of maturity). About 60% of spruce forests in Karelia grow within the middle taiga subzone.
Deciduous forests(birch, aspen and alder forests) in the conditions of Karelia arose mainly in connection with human activity, and thus they are derivatives. In the subzone of the middle taiga is about 80% deciduous forests republics. Birch forests make up over 90% of the area of ​​deciduous tree stands.
Most of the birch forests were formed after the felling of spruce plantations. The replacement of pine by birch occurs much less frequently, usually in the most productive forest types of the middle taiga subzone.

Under the influence of economic development, mainly logging, indigenous forests in Karelia are disappearing. They are replaced by derivative plantings of natural and artificial origin, a feature of which is the same age. What are the economic and environmental consequences of this?
Judging by the volume of wood, pine and spruce forests of the same age are preferable. The stock of wood of even-aged blueberry spruce forests aged 125-140 years in the conditions of southern Karelia reaches 450-480 m3 per hectare, while in the most productive spruce forests of different ages under the same conditions this stock does not exceed 360 m3. Usually, the stock of wood in spruce stands of different ages is 20-30% less compared to those of the same age. If we compare the wood products of the same-aged and uneven-aged forest stands not by volume, but by weight, the picture changes noticeably. Since the density of wood in forests of different ages is 15-20% higher, the difference in wood mass is reduced to 5-10% in favor of forest stands of the same age.
However, for the resources of most types of non-timber forest products (berries, medicinal plants etc.), the advantage is on the side of forests of different ages. They have a more diverse and numerous population of birds and mammals, including commercial species. It should also be noted that forests of the same age, compared to those of different ages, have less wind resistance, worse soil and water protection properties, and are more affected by pests and diseases.
But in the specific natural-geographical conditions of Karelia (short and cool summers, weak autumn and spring floods, dissected relief, which causes a small catchment area, moderate wind regime, etc.), the replacement of forests of different ages with those of the same age, as a rule, does not entail serious environmental consequences. .
A negative phenomenon from an economic point of view is the replacement of coniferous species with deciduous species - birch, aspen, and alder. At present, the change of species can be prevented by the rational organization of reforestation and thinning. According to the available data, pine successfully regenerates on 72-83% of felled areas, spruce - only on 15%, and only thanks to the preserved undergrowth and thinner. The rest of the clearings are renewed with deciduous species. However, after 10-15 years, more than half of the area of ​​deciduous young stands is formed by the second layer - from spruce, due to which high-performance spruce stands can be formed by thinning or reconstruction cuttings. Change of breeds does not cause noticeable ecological consequences.
When forming the forests of the future, one should proceed from their intended purpose. For forests of the second or third groups, where the main goal is to obtain most wood, preferably even-aged stands. Forests of the first group, designed to perform soil-protective, water-protective, recreational and sanitary-hygienic functions, are more suitable for plantings of different ages.
The dominant importance of the forest as a source of reproducible natural resources (wood, medicinal raw materials, mushrooms, berries, etc.), as a habitat for valuable commercial animal species and as a factor stabilizing biospheric processes, in particular, restraining the development of negative manifestations of anthropogenic impact on environment, in the conditions of Karelia will continue in the future.

Swamps.
Together with swampy forests, swamps occupy 30% of the republic's area. Their wide development is facilitated by the relative youth of rivers and streams. They cannot wash out the hard crystalline ridges that come to the surface and develop the valleys, therefore, despite the large slopes of the terrain, they weakly drain most of the territory of Karelia. There are many swamps in the Olonets, Ladvinskaya, Korzinskaya, Shuiskaya and other lowlands. But the most swampy is the White Sea lowland. The smallest swamps are in the Ladoga region, on the Zaonezhsky peninsula and in part of the Pudozh region.
The peat deposit of the Karelian marshes contains 90-95% of water. Their surface is abundantly moistened, but unlike the shallow waters of lakes and rivers overgrown with vegetation, the water rarely stands more than 20 cm above the soil surface. The upper soil layer of the swamp is usually composed of loose and very water-intensive, poorly decomposed peat.
Bogs arise by peating of shallow and small water bodies, which appeared in abundance on the territory of Karelia after the retreat of the glacier, or when drained on dry valleys weakened. The boundary between the swamp and wetlands is conventionally assumed to be a peat depth of 30 cm; The 50 cm peat deposit is already considered suitable for industrial development.
As peat accumulates, the soil-ground or groundwater that feeds the swamp after its occurrence gradually ceases to reach the root layer, and the vegetation switches to feeding on atmospheric waters, which are poor in nutrients. Thus, in the process of the development of swamps, a progressive depletion of the soil with elements of nitrogen-mineral nutrition occurs. There are lowland (rich nutrition) stage of swamp development, transitional (medium nutrition), high (poor nutrition) and dystrophic (superpoor nutrition), in which peat accumulation stops and its degradation begins.
If swamps develop in more or less closed basins or by peating up shallow lakes, the central part of the swamp massif is depleted first. There is also the most intensive accumulation of peat.
The vegetation of the swamps is very diverse, due to the large differences in environmental conditions - from rich to extremely poor, from extremely wet to arid. In addition, their vegetation is complex. With the exception of heavily watered swamps, which are common only for the first stages of development, the surface of swamps is characterized by a microrelief. Microrelief elevations are formed by hummocks (grass, moss, woody), often elongated in the form of ridges and abundantly moistened hollows. Environmental conditions in terms of thermal regime, moisture and nutrition, they are sharply different on bumps and in hollows, therefore, the vegetation on them also varies greatly.
Lowland swamps are dominated by herbaceous vegetation in the form of thickets of reeds, horsetail, watch, cinquefoil, sometimes with a moss cover of moisture-loving green mosses. On the outskirts of swamps with abundant flowing moisture, in combination with grassy vegetation, forests with black (glutinous) alder, birch, pine or spruce are developed, occupying microrelief elevations.
In transitional bogs, basically the same species grow as in lowland bogs, but there are always sphagnum mosses, which eventually form a continuous moss cover. Birch and pine grow, but they are oppressed, the tree layer is sparse.
In raised bogs, sphagnum mosses reign supreme on all elements of the microrelief: in hollows - the most moisture-loving (maus, lindbergia, balticum), on elevations - fuscum, magellanicum, capable of surviving droughts, in low-humid hollows and flat places - papillesum. From the higher plants grow sundews, scheuchceria, bud, cotton grass, downy, swamp shrubs, cloudberries. Of the trees - only the oppressed low-growing pine, which forms special swamp forms.
In dystrophic bogs, the productivity of vegetation is so low that the accumulation of peat stops. AT in large numbers secondary lakes appear, sphagnum mosses on hummocks and ridges are gradually replaced by fruticose lichens (moss moss, reindeer moss), and in hollows - algae and liver mosses. Since the dystrophic stage occurs primarily in the central part of the swamp massif and peat accumulation does not occur here, then over time the top of the massif from a convex becomes concave and heavily watered, which is the reason for the formation of secondary lakes.
The swampy massifs of Karelia are characterized by a winding coastline and the presence of upland islands; in connection with the features of the relief, a significant part is occupied by hollows. water supply of these massifs is associated with groundwater outlets. The central part of such swamps has a lower surface compared to the edges, abundant flowing moisture, heavily watered hollows or even lakes.
Hollows and lakes are separated from each other by narrow bridges in the form of ridges covered with grass-moss, less often - purely moss vegetation with oppressed pine or birch. The fringes of the swamps, adjoining the uplands, are fed by poor waters flowing down from them, and are occupied by the vegetation of transitional or even raised bogs. Bog massifs of this structure are called "aapa", they are most common in the northern mainland of Karelia.
The marsh massifs of the Shuiskaya, Korzinskaya, Ladvinskaya, Olonets lowlands are of a completely different structure. There prevail fens without a lowered watered central part. They are largely drained and are used in forestry and agriculture. In some places in these lowlands there are swamps that have reached the upper stage of development.
Upland bog massifs predominate on the vast White Sea Lowland, in the central part of which the vegetation of dystrophic type bogs is developed. Along with sphagnum mosses, reindeer mosses are abundant, which are winter food. reindeer, and in hollows - hepatic mosses and algae.
The main economic significance of the marshes of Karelia is determined by the great opportunities for their melioration for forestry and Agriculture. With high agricultural technology, marsh soils are very fertile. But we should not forget that in their natural state, swamps have a certain water protection value. Large crops of cranberries, cloudberries, blueberries and many types of medicinal plants ripen annually in the swamps. In order to protect berry and medicinal plants, as well as typical and unique bogs for scientific research a number of swamps (mainly in the southern part of the republic) are excluded from drainage plans or declared sanctuaries by decrees of the Council of Ministers of the Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic.

Mountain tundra.
In the very north-west of Karelia, where the spurs of the Maanselkya ridge are located, you can find areas of mountain tundra covered with low shrubs, mosses and lichens with rare small trees of winding birch. Plots of moss and lichen wastelands are also found much to the south, practically throughout Karelia, on the tops and steep slopes of selga, composed of crystalline rocks with thin soil or no soil at all. In the latter case, only scale lichens grow here.

Meadows and hayfields.
Until recently, natural meadows and hayfields on grassy swamps occupied about 1% of the republic's area. Unfortunately, a significant part of them has been overgrown with forest in recent years.
Almost all the natural meadows of Karelia have arisen in places from the clearing of forests and on fallow arable lands. The only exceptions are coastal meadows and swamp hayfields. The latter are in essence not meadows, but grass or moss-grass marshes; at present, they are almost never used for haymaking.
Meadow vegetation is represented by real meadows, as well as hollow, peaty and swampy types of meadows, with peaty ones being the most common.
Among real meadows highest value have large-grass and small-grass, confined most often to deposits. The former are developed on the richest soils, their herbage is composed of the best fodder cereals, among which are usually meadow fescue with an admixture of timothy, meadow foxtail, sometimes hedgehog and couch grass. From other herbs - bluegrass, clover, mouse peas and meadow forbs.
However, there are few such meadows. Most often they can be found in the regions of the northern Ladoga region. They are the most productive, the quality of hay is high. Of the upland (not swampy) meadows, small-grass meadows are widely represented, with a predominance of thin or fragrant spikelets in the herbage of bent grass. They are also confined mainly to fallows, but with depleted soils. Herbs often contain a lot of legumes and meadow forbs, often with a predominance of cuffs. The productivity of such meadows is lower, but the yield and quality of hay are significantly increased with surface fertilization.
A small area is occupied by empty meadows with low-growing herbage, which are dominated by white beetles, sometimes sheep fescue. They are unproductive, but they should not be neglected: white-bearded plants are responsive to surface fertilization. Meadows dominated by pike are confined to poorly drained heavy mineral soils with signs of stagnant moisture or to peaty soils of different mechanical composition. They also develop as a result of excessive grazing and in the absence of care for crops of perennial grasses on drained peat and heavy clay soils. Shchuchniks are distributed throughout Karelia.
In the herbage, in addition to pike, there are bent grass, bluegrass, red fescue, caustic and golden buttercups, and other meadow herbs. Clover are rare and in small numbers. The usual admixture of representatives of marshy meadows - black sedge, filamentous rush, unnoticed weeds, meadowsweet. The yield is quite high, the quality of hay is average, but when haymaking is late, it is low. Surface application of fertilizers noticeably increases the yield, but the composition of the herbage and the quality of hay change little.
Small sedge meadows with a predominance of black sedge in the herbage are developed on peaty or peaty-gley soils with abundant stagnant moisture. Often there is a moss cover of moisture-loving green mosses. The yield is average, the quality of hay is low. The effectiveness of surface fertilization is negligible.
Relatively often, mainly in the southern part of the republic, there are meadows with a predominance of reed grass in the herbage. Coastal aquatic vegetation is of great importance. A number of commercial fish lay eggs on parts of plants submerged in water. waterfowl, including ducks, use this vegetation as fodder and protective grounds. The muskrat also feeds here. Widespread thickets of reeds and horsetails should be mowed down and used for green fodder for livestock, for hay and silage.
Until mid-August, cane leaves contain a lot of carbohydrates, sugars and proteins (no less than good hay). There are fewer proteins in horsetail, but their content remains unchanged until late autumn. However, when using coastal-aquatic vegetation for food, domestic animals should be wary of poisonous plants from the umbrella family - hemlock (poisonous milestones) and omerzhnik, which are sporadically found in the thickets of horsetail and sedge. Their poisonous properties are preserved in hay.

List of plants with useful properties growing on the territory of Karelia
Calamus vulgaris Astragalus danish Ledum marsh Sheep vulgaris Thigh saxifrage Black henbane Belozor marsh Calla marsh Birch drooping (warty) Hemlock spotted Forest spreading North wrestler (high) Siberian cow parsnip Common lingonberry Budra ivy-shaped Mountain bugushnik Initial letter Valeriana officinalis Cornflower meadow, blue Cornflower
dosborolistny, yellow, simple Three-leaved watch Ground reed grass Monetary loosestrife, common. Heather common Veronica long-leaved, oak, officinalis. Veh poisonous Catchment common Crowberry bisexual, black. Voronets spike-shaped. Crow's eye four-leafed Bindweed field Carnation lush, grass Geranium forest, meadow. Blueberry Highlander viviparous, amphibious, snake, cancer necks, pepper, bird, knotweed. Adonis ordinary (cuckoo color) Gravity city, river. Gyrsanka rotundifolia Gryzhanka naked Guljavnik officinalis Two-leafed reed-shaped (canary-reechnik) Elecampane British, high. Loosestrife willow-leaved Sweet clover white, officinalis. Sandman white (white tarragon) Angelica forest Fragrant spikelet common Oregano vulgaris Dymyanka officinalis Angelica (angelica) officinalis. Hedgehog national team Spruce European, Siberian. Zheltushnik levkoy Larkspur high Tenacious creeping Zhiryanka common Starweed cereal medium (wood louse) St. John's wort (ordinary), spotted (tetrahedral) Wild strawberry Winter-loving umbrella Common goldenrod (golden rod) Fragrant bison Istod bitter, common. Kalina common Kaluga marsh Iris iris (yellow iris) Fireweed marsh Common sorrel Common clover (red) creeping (white), medium. Cranberry marsh (four-petal) Round-leaved, peach-leaved, onion-shaped (rapunzel-shaped), prefabricated (crowded) bell. Magnificent consolida (field larkspur) European hoof Mullein bear's ear Field barnacle Awnless rump Arctic bramble (brambleberry, polyberry, princess) stony Cat's foot dioecious Nettle dioecious, stinging. Burnet officinalis Yellow capsule Water lily white, small (tetrahedral), pure white Kulbaba autumn European bathing suit Kupena officinalis Forest cupyr Meadowsweet (meadowsweet) vyazolistny May lily-of-the-valley Potentilla goose, upright (galangal), silvery. Spreading quinoa Northern linnea Heart-shaped linden Meadow foxtail Large burdock Soddy meadow (pike) Common toadflax (wild snapdragon) Acid, creeping, poisonous ranunculus, Sickle-shaped alfalfa (yellow) stepmother Lungwort common (obscure) Canadian small-scale spurge (common) Cloudberry squat Soapweed officinalis Mylnyanka marsh Mint field Meadowgrass bluegrass Impatiens common Forget-me-not field Auburn ordinary (smolevka) Meadow fescue, red Dandelion officinalis Comfrey officinalis Sticky alder, gray Omaloteka forest ) Common bracken Shaggy sedge Sow thistle garden Stonecrop, hare cabbage Bittersweet nightshade, black Shepherd's purse ordinary
Common tansy Sabelnik marsh Sedmichnik europeanSorrel water Blue colza Common colophony, umbellate Susak umbrella Sudden marsh, marsh Currant black Gooseberry commonYaruka field Pine commonSorrel field Arrow leaf common Hawkweed hairy Core meadow-sour Sivets meadow Shchitovnik male Pikulnik bipartite andromeda) Soft true odorous bedstraw (fragrant woodruff) Plantain large lanceolate medium bent bent Wormwood common field bitter grass Popovnik (cottonwort) common Motherwort five-lobed Couch grass creeping Agrimony ordinary (burdock) Cattail angustifolia Rhodiola rosea (golden root) Chamomile (medicinal) fragrant (odorous) , green, tongueless, chamomile) odorless (odorless tririb) English round-leaved sundew Common ash Duckweed Timothy grass meadow Thyme ordinary Cumin bull Bearberry a common toritsa field Torichnik red Triostren marsh Reed southern (common) Yarrow ordinary Phallopia curly (highlander bindweed) Violet tricolor (pansies) Chamerion narrow-leaved (willow-tea) Horsetail forest - field Common hop Common chicory Common chicory Hellebore Lobela Three-parted bird cherry ordinary Bilberry ordinary Chernogolovka common Thistle curly China meadow Chistets forest

History of forest management in Karelia. In the 1920s and 1930s, the Soviet Union needed natural resources for the restoration and development of the country's national economy. The forest was especially important. Karelia, due to its significant forest reserves and proximity to the central industrial region, was optimally suited for active logging. The path of extensive forest consumption has traditionally been used. The orientation of the republic was for roundwood, but not for processing. That was typical for the whole of Russia.

In the 1960s and 1970s Karelia saw the maximum volume of logging (more than 18 million m3) (see figure). This is due to the creation of temporary city-forming logging enterprises (Pyaozersky logging enterprise, Muezersky logging enterprise) for a period of 30-40 years to cut down the existing timber base.

Rice. 1. Volume of harvested timber (million m3) in Karelia.

AAC in Karelia. In Karelia, the allowable cut is mastered better than in other regions of Russia (by 70%). At the same time, today there is a sharp drop in timber harvesting (from 18 to 7 million m3). This is due to the critical depletion of the timber resource base, depreciation of the material and technical equipment of logging enterprises, traditional but outdated logging methods. Also, the allowable cutting area is not achieved, since its calculation does not take into account the actual location, quality and availability of the cutting area. Often, low quality forests and under-cuts of previous years (deconcentrated cutting fund) are included in the allowable cutting area. With modern requirements for the quality and stock of forest stands entering the felling, this leads to a 2-3-fold overestimation of the ecologically and economically accessible level of forest management.

Forest resources of the Republic of Karelia. The total area of ​​the forest fund of the republic is about 14 million hectares, including the area covered with forests - about 9 million hectares. The total stock of wood resources in Karelia in forests of all categories and ages is about 980 million m3, of which 420 million m3 are mature and overmature stands.

Karelia exist different kinds specially protected natural areas(SPNA). According to the federal law (dated February 15, 1995), there are 7 categories of protected areas. However, logging is prohibited only in three categories (reserves, National parks and some reserves). In Karelia, there are 2.2% of such territories where logging is prohibited.

At the same time, about 5-7% of the total area of ​​the forest fund remains in Karelia. These forests preserve natural biodiversity and ensure the stability of the Earth's biosphere, but most of them are not protected and are subject to felling.

Rice. 2. Intact forests of Karelia.

Timber industry complex (LPK) of Karelia. In the structure of industrial production of the Republic of Karelia, the forestry complex occupies a leading position. Of the 760 thousand people living in Karelia, about 45 thousand people work in the timber industry. Approximately 25 thousand people in Karelia are engaged in logging. About 7 million m3 are cut down annually. In neighboring Finland, about 6 thousand people work in the logging industry, and 50.5 million m3 are harvested.

The cost of standing timber in Karelia is about $1/m3, and in Finland it is about $17/m3.
The cost of logging according to the Russian technology is about 70 rubles/m3, and according to the Finnish technology - about 280 rubles/m3. This means that 4 times more goes to the salary fund of Finnish loggers.
The largest timber industry companies in Karelia: Karellesprom JSC is an enterprise, more than 50% of whose shares are owned by the Government of Karelia. This enterprise owns about 10% of the shares of almost all timber industry enterprises in Karelia.

in the republic large enterprises partly owned by foreign representative offices: Kondopoga JSC (20% of the shares are owned by Conrad Jacobson GmbH, Germany), Ladenso (49% of the shares are owned by StoraEnso, Finland).

There is reason to believe that the rare and low-growing so-called “clarified” pine forests, especially widespread in the northern part of the republic, owe their origin to repeated stable ground fires. In habitats with fresh and moist soils, ground fires prevent the replacement of pine by spruce: thin-barked, shallow-rooted spruce is easily damaged by fire, while thick-barked, deeper-rooted pine successfully resists it. Over the past 25-30 years, as a result of the successful fight against forest fires, the scale of replacement of pine by spruce has increased dramatically.

Derivative pine forests that have arisen as a result of economic activity are usually of the same age. The participation of deciduous species and spruce in them can be quite high, up to the replacement of pine by deciduous on rich soils. If undergrowth and spruce thinner are preserved during the felling of plantations, a spruce plantation may form in place of a pine forest. However, both from an economic and environmental point of view, this change is undesirable. Pine forests give more wood, they have more berries and mushrooms, they are more attractive for vacationers. Unlike spruce, pine gives resin. Pine forests are distinguished by the best water protection and soil protection properties.

The replacement of pine by spruce can be allowed only on the most fertile soils, where spruce stands are not much inferior to pine forests in terms of productivity and resistance to adverse natural factors (winds, harmful insects, fungal diseases). The productivity of pine forests in Karelia is much less than in the southern and middle regions of the country, which is largely due to unfavorable soil and climatic conditions. However, this is not the only reason. As mentioned earlier, persistent ground fires not only damage trees, but also reduce soil fertility. In tree stands of different ages, pine is subjected to oppression during the first 20-60 years, which negatively affects its growth until the end of its life.

In primary spruce forests, stands of different ages. As an admixture, pine, birch, aspen, and less often gray alder can be found in them. The share of these species in the composition of the forest stand usually does not exceed 20-30% (by stock). etc.) of such forest stands fluctuate slightly over time. The state of mobile equilibrium can be disturbed by felling, fire, windblow and other factors.

In spruce forests of different ages, the youngest and smallest trees predominate in terms of the number of trunks, and in terms of stock, trees older than 160 years with a diameter above the average. The crown canopy is discontinuous, jagged, and therefore a significant amount of light penetrates to the soil surface, and here grasses and shrubs are quite numerous.

Thanks to its shade tolerance, spruce firmly holds the territory it occupies. Fires in spruce forests were rare and did not have a significant impact on their lives. Windblows were not observed in stands of different ages either. Derivative spruce forests arose in clearings, or in the so-called "undercuts", as a rule, through a change of species - open spaces were first populated with birch, less often with aspen, spruce appeared under their canopy. By 100-120 years, less durable hardwoods died off, and spruce again occupied the previously lost territory. Only about 15% of fellings are restored by spruce without changing species, and mainly in those cases when viable undergrowth and spruce thinner are preserved during felling.

The replacement of spruce by deciduous species during logging is associated with its biological and ecological characteristics. Spruce is afraid of late spring frosts, so in the first years of its life it needs protection in the form of a hardwood canopy; spruce does not get along well with cereals, which disappear after the appearance of birch and aspen; spruce bears fruit relatively rarely (abundant crops of seeds occur every 5-6 years) and grows slowly in the first years of life, so birch and aspen overtake it; finally, spruce occupies mostly rich soils where hardwoods grow most successfully.

Derivative spruce forests are relatively even in age. Under their closed canopy, twilight reigns, the soil is covered with fallen needles, there are few grasses and shrubs, there is practically no viable undergrowth. Compared to pine, the range of habitats of spruce is much narrower. Compared to pine forests, the productivity of spruce forests under similar growing conditions is noticeably lower, and only on rich fresh soils is it approximately the same (by the age of maturity). About 60% of spruce forests in Karelia grow within the middle taiga subzone.

Deciduous forests (birch, aspen and alder forests) in the conditions of Karelia arose mainly in connection with human activity, and thus they are derivatives. About 80% of the republic's deciduous forests are located in the middle taiga subzone. Birch forests make up over 90% of the area of ​​deciduous tree stands. Most of the birch forests were formed after felling spruce plantations. The replacement of pine by birch occurs much less frequently, usually in the most productive forest types of the middle taiga subzone.

Under the influence of economic development, mainly logging, indigenous forests in Karelia are disappearing. They are replaced by derivative plantings of natural and artificial origin, a feature of which is the same age. What are the economic and environmental consequences of this?

Judging by the volume of wood, pine and spruce forests of the same age are preferable. The stock of wood of even-aged blueberry spruce forests aged 125-140 years in the conditions of southern Karelia reaches 450-480 m3 per hectare, while in the most productive spruce forests of different ages under the same conditions this stock does not exceed 360 m3. Usually, the stock of timber in uneven-aged spruce stands is 20-30% less than in same-age stands. If we compare the wood products of the same-aged and uneven-aged forest stands not by volume, but by weight, the picture changes noticeably. Since the density of wood in forests of different ages is 15-20% higher, the difference in wood mass is reduced to 5-10% in favor of forest stands of the same age.

However, in terms of the resources of most types of non-timber forest products (berries, medicinal plants, etc.), the advantage is on the side of forests of different ages. They have a more diverse and numerous population of birds and mammals, including commercial species. It should also be noted that forests of the same age, compared to those of different ages, have less wind resistance, worse soil and water protection properties, and are more affected by pests and diseases.

But in the specific natural-geographical conditions of Karelia (short and cool summers, weak autumn and spring floods, dissected relief, which causes a small catchment area, moderate wind regime, etc.), the replacement of forests of different ages with those of the same age, as a rule, does not entail serious environmental consequences. .

A negative phenomenon from an economic point of view is the replacement of coniferous species by deciduous species - birch, aspen, alder. At present, the change of species can be prevented by the rational organization of reforestation and thinning. According to the available data, pine successfully regenerates on 72-83% of felled areas, spruce - only on 15%, and only thanks to the preserved undergrowth and thinner. The rest of the clearings are renewed with deciduous species. However, after 10-15 years, more than half of the area of ​​deciduous young stands is formed by the second layer - from spruce, due to which high-performance spruce stands can be formed by thinning or reconstruction cuttings. Change of breeds does not cause noticeable ecological consequences.

When forming the forests of the future, one should proceed from their intended purpose. For forests of the second or third groups, where the main goal is to obtain the largest amount of wood, even-aged stands are preferable. Forests of the first group, designed to perform soil-protective, water-protective, recreational and sanitary-hygienic functions, are more suitable for plantings of different ages.

The dominant importance of the forest as a source of reproducible natural resources (wood, medicinal raw materials, mushrooms, berries, etc.), as a habitat for valuable commercial species of zhi-. and as a factor stabilizing biospheric processes, in particular, restraining the development of negative manifestations anthropogenic impact on the environment, in the conditions of Karelia will continue in the future.

Sometimes affectionate, but often gray, dank edge of endless taiga and innumerable lakes. Rocks, swamps, rivers, streams. Mosquitoes, midges, berries, mushrooms, fishing. Off-road, abandoned villages, fields overgrown with grass, carved into the living body of the forest, most often under clean. Crazy sunsets and sunrises. Unforgettable white nights. Seagulls over flat water and white steamships.
This is all Karelia. The edge is heavy but beautiful. With your soul.
Who lives by his own laws and rules.

Karelia is located in the northwest of the country and is part of the Northwestern Federal District. This is a republic within Russia: it has its own coat of arms, flag and anthem. About 50% of the territory of the Karelian region is covered with forest, and a quarter is a water surface. Karelia is the "land of lakes", there are more than 61,000 lakes, 27,000 rivers and 29 reservoirs. Most large lakes- Ladoga and Onega, and most major rivers- Vodla, Vyg, Kovda, Kem, Sunna and Shuya.

On the Ladvinskaya Plain

Karelia is crossed by the "Blue Road" - an international tourist route connecting Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia. The main types of recreation in the region: sightseeing tours (Kizhi - Valaam - Solovki - Kivach Waterfall - Marcial Waters - Ruskeala marble canyon), leisure(quad bike safaris, rafting on rapids, hunting and fishing, hiking, skiing, bike tours, jeep tours), children's and youth camps, event and holiday tours, holidays in cottages and tourist complexes.

waterfall "Yukaknkoski"

Vedlozero

The capital is Petrozavodsk. Big cities and tourist centers: Kondopoga, Kem, Kostomuksha, Sortavala, Medvezhyegorsk, Belomorsk, Pudozh, Olonets. The population is about 691 thousand people.

The fauna of Karelia is relatively young; it was formed after ice age. In total, 63 species of mammals live on the territory of the republic, many of which, for example, the Ladoga ringed seal, flying squirrel and brown earflaps are listed in the Red Book. On the rivers of Karelia, you can see the huts of European and Canadian beavers.

The Canadian beaver, as well as the muskrat, the American mink are acclimatized representatives of the fauna of North America. raccoon dog also not a native inhabitant of Karelia, she comes from Far East. Since the late 1960s, wild boars began to appear, and roe deer enter the southern regions. There is a bear, lynx, badger and wolf.

From year to year, geese flying north stop to rest in the fields of the Olonets Plain in Karelia

285 species of birds live in Karelia, of which 36 species are listed in the Red Book of Karelia. The most common birds are finches. There is upland game - hazel grouse, black grouse, white partridges, capercaillie. Every spring geese come to Karelia from warm countries. common predator birds: owls, hawks, golden eagles, marsh harriers. There are also 40 pairs of rare white-tailed eagles. Of the waterfowl: ducks, loons, waders, many gulls and the largest diving duck in Karelia - the common eider, valuable for its warm down.

Just like the fauna, the flora of Karelia was formed relatively recently - 10-15 thousand years ago. Coniferous forests predominate, to the north - pine forests, to the south - both pine and spruce forests. Main conifers: Scotch pine and Scotch spruce. Less common are Finnish spruce, Siberian spruce, extremely rare - Siberian larch. Small-leaved species are widespread in the forests of Karelia, these are: downy birch, warty birch, aspen, gray alder, and some types of willow.

Karelia is the land of berries, lingonberries, blueberries, cloudberries, blueberries, cranberries grow in abundance here, raspberries grow in the forests - both wild and feral, sometimes moving from village gardens. Strawberries and currants grow abundantly in the south of the republic. In the forests, juniper is common, bird cherry and buckthorn are not uncommon. Occasionally there is a red viburnum.

Museum-Reserve "Kizhi"

The Kizhi Museum-Reserve is one of the largest open-air museums in Russia. This is a unique historical, cultural and natural complex, which is a particularly valuable object cultural heritage peoples of Russia. The basis of the museum collection is the ensemble of the Kizhi Pogost, an object of the World Cultural and natural heritage UNESCO.

Church of the Transfiguration

37 meters of unprecedented beauty, 22 domes stretching to the sky!
Undoubtedly, the most famous and outstanding building of the ensemble. The church is the tallest building on the island. It can be seen from almost anywhere on land and water. The architecture is impressive. It doesn’t fit in my head, how is it possible to build such beauty without a modern tool, without nails ?! But the church was indeed built without a single nail in 1714. Just this year, the laying of the altar of the church took place. The history of the church says that it was erected on the site of an old one that burned down from a lightning strike.

Church of the Intercession

The second church of the ensemble is winter, in honor of the Intercession Mother of God(holiday October 14) - built half a century after Preobrazhenskaya. The church is crowned with nine cupolas. In Russian wooden architecture, such a structure is unique. The existing four-domed iconostasis of the Intercession Church consists of genuine icons, many of which were painted specifically for this temple. The oldest of them dates back to the 16th century. Divine services are held in the Church of the Intercession during the summer and until the Intercession itself. In 2003, the parish received the status of a stauropegic parish and is under the patronage of His Holiness Patriarch and All Russia Alexy II.

Voitsky Padun

It is located in Central Karelia on the Nizhny Vyg River, 2 km from the village of Nadvoitsy. The waterfall as such is no longer there, only its dried-up bed remains framed by dark rocks, green forests and mighty boulders. But once the waterfall was famous, legends and traditions were composed about it. His fame grew significantly in the 18th century, when the Voitsky copper mine began to work nearby.

One of the last famous people, who visited the "acting" waterfall, was the writer M.M. Prishvin. He left a description of it, which also includes the following words: "... Rumble, chaos! It's hard to concentrate, it's unthinkable to realize what I see? But it pulls and pulls to look... Obviously, some mysterious forces influence the fall water, and at every moment all its particles are different: the waterfall lives some kind of infinitely complex life of its own ... "

Balaam. Bay "Rocky Coast"

Balaam. Bay "Rocky Coast". Having passed from the pier of Bolshaya Nikonovskaya Bay to the south-west of the Valaam archipelago, we find ourselves in the area of ​​​​the most picturesque bay "Rocky Coast" with the unique nature of Valaam and the surrounding Ladoga.

Balaam. Bolshaya Nikonovskaya bay

Mountain park "Ruskeala". The pearl of the Mountain Park is the Marble Canyon.

Marble Canyon is a monument of industrial culture (mining) of the late 18th - early 20th centuries, officially included in the list of cultural heritage of Russia in 1998. and drifts, there are no more in Europe. From here, blocks were obtained for facing many architectural creations of St. Petersburg, including the majestic St. Isaac's Cathedral.

This is the oldest of the Ruskeala quarries. Its length is 450 m, width 60-100 m, depth 30-50 m. It is flooded to the level of the upper underground horizon. The Finns flooded the quarry before the start of the Soviet-Finnish war of 1939-40. Most adits of the first third of the last century are under water. Only one of them is located above the water level.

Outwardly, the Marble Canyon makes a tremendous impression: gray-white rocks break off into a turquoise lake with heavily indented shores, and go to a depth of many meters.

Some of the boulders hang above the water at a negative angle, and in the grottoes that have formed in the sheer cliffs, you can swim in a boat and admire the play of light on the marble ceiling. The grottoes look very beautiful, the white marble of the vaults and walls is wonderfully reflected in calm water.

The combination of the nature of Karelia and human activities have given this quarry a surprisingly picturesque look that attracts travelers not only from Karelia, but also from St. Petersburg, Moscow and other places.

Ruskeala waterfall "Akhvenkoski"

Ruskeala waterfall Ahvenkoski translated from Finnish as "Perch threshold". locals sometimes referred to as "the waterfall at the three bridges". At this point, the winding river Tohmajoki crosses the road three times.
The Ahvenkoski waterfall gained particular fame thanks to the film “The Dawns Here Are Quiet” filmed in 1972.

Mannerheim line

The Mannerheim Line (fin. Mannerheim-linja) is a complex of defensive structures between the Gulf of Finland and Ladoga, created in 1920-1930 on the Finnish part of the Karelian Isthmus to deter a possible offensive strike from the USSR 132-135 km long.

This line became the site of the most significant fighting in the "Winter War" of 1940 and received great fame in the international press. Three lines of defense were planned between Vyborg and the border with the USSR. The one closest to the border was called “main”, then there was “intermediate”, near Vyborg “rear”.

The most powerful node of the main line was located in the Summakyl area, the place of the greatest threat of a breakthrough. During the Winter War, the Finnish and Western press named the complex of the main defensive line after the commander-in-chief, Marshal Karl Mannerheim, on whose orders plans for the defense of the Karelian Isthmus were developed back in 1918. On his own initiative, the largest structures of the defense complex were created.

The defenses of the Mannerheim Line were greatly exaggerated by propaganda on both sides.

place of death of the 1217th regiment

From 24.00 6.02.42 Until the outgoing day of February 7, 1942, the enemy defended the taken lines, simultaneously all continuous attacks on the defense sector. The 1217 Infantry Regiment heroically, defending every inch of land with fire and counterattacks, threw the enemy back to their original position. The enemy suffered heavy losses. But, having met strong resistance from the enemy, the units lay down and went on the defensive. Surrounded by 1217 joint ventures, having not received reinforcements with manpower and ammunition, he died in fierce battles with the enemy, 28 people remained from the regiment.

The bodies of the dead Soviet soldiers, according to the descriptions of an eyewitness, lay in 2-3 tiers, and during an artillery attack, parts of the bodies scattered throughout the forest. In total, encircled from the division went missing - 1229 people died.

From the memoirs of the former private of the 8th Finnish Infantry Division Otto Koinvungas from Oulu: “The first thing we saw when we arrived at the front line was a soldier carrying a whole cart of corpses of Russian soldiers on a horse. In early January, the Russians went on the attack, but were defeated. On both sides of the road there were so many Russian soldiers, dead and frozen, that the dead, standing, supported each other.

From Onega - to Ladoga. Svir river.

Svir - big river in the north-east of the Leningrad region of Russia, near its administrative border with the Republic of Karelia, an important link in the Volga-Baltic waterway. The Svir originates in Lake Onega and flows into Lake Ladoga. There were rapids in the middle reaches of the Svir, but after the construction of a cascade of power plants on the river, the dams raised the water level, flooding the rapids and creating a deep waterway along the entire length of the river.

The Svir has two significant tributaries - the Pasha and Oyat rivers, used for timber rafting. The river is inhabited by perch, bream, pike, roach, burbot, catfish, salmon, grayling, etc.
The originality of the river is given by the many islands. The river flows in the lowlands, which in the past were occupied by glacial reservoirs. The river is inhabited by perch, bream, pike, roach, burbot, catfish, salmon, grayling, etc.

WINTER IN KARELIA

Kivach waterfall in winter

Ice hummocks on Lake Onega

Russian and foreign tourists have long had their eyes on the Karelian region. And the point here is not only in its virgin nature and unique architectural monuments. The main reason is simple: the tourist season in the republic is not limited to three summer months- people go to Karelia continuously throughout the year. Both fans of active tourism and those who love calm travel the whole family.

Photos are not mine. A huge number of Yandex sites and pages have been used. Sorry for not naming anyone in particular.

Upper Lampi, we were intrigued by the fact that we could not really see it from the trail. Karelian forest It turned out to be very dense and looked like a fairy-tale jungle with old moss-covered trees, or a jungle with flowers taller than human height. But it is curious what the Karelian forest hides. And therefore, as it was decided the day before, my daughter and I went back to the forest to see what kind of mysterious rock it was. You need to walk through such thickets only in closed clothes and be sure to use repellents from ticks, and by the way, there were not very many mosquitoes.

Ivan tea is taller than human growth.

So, we again go along the third path path from. After some time of the way, one gets the impression that the path goes along the slope of a mountain overgrown with forest. On the left is an elevation, and on the right is a lowland and it seems quite deep.

After walking about 1 km, we reached the rock, but it looks more like a stone ridge stretching along the path and overgrown with moss and trees. Just like that, through the thickets of grass and bushes, you can’t get close to the rock, however, in one place from the health path route, a barely noticeable path leaves to the rock to the left. We would not have noticed it at all if it were not for the red cloth on a tree branch by the path. Someone's label.

We turned onto the path and began to slowly climb up the mossy stones.

Suddenly Nastya exclaims: “Oh, mom, look!” And points back down. Turning back, I was taken aback by surprise. A snag in the form of a mythical buffalo was looking at us with its mouth open. Mystic some. I even got goosebumps. Wow, we passed by this snag and did not notice it unusual shape.

But we did not look at the snag for a long time, we were attracted by the more pleasant gifts of the Karelian forest. The slope is full of red currant bushes. Oh, how beautifully these berries sparkle in the sun.

Having risen to the ledge of the ridge, they found a blueberry. Mm, so many blueberries, yummy.

And the Karelian forest, as if inviting us to go forward, revealing its beauty to us. There's so much here beautiful flowers similar to bells. I wonder what they are called?

We rise after these blue flowers even higher. What bizarre outlines of boulders overgrown with moss and grass. It's like an owl watching you with one eye.

We climbed up. Oh, a birdhouse on a birch. How nice. True, it seems to me that he was nailed a little low.

Yes, there is a whole field different colors! Straight bouquet. And there are strawberries here too.

My daughter loves macro photography. I think she's good at it.

It looks like someone comes here to the mountain quite often. There are traces of a fire and some boards, poles, and it seems like cardboard. As if they were going to build something here, or they are just sitting on these boards by the fire. We did not go there, walked around this place, and ... another birdhouse. Painted this time. Interesting.

We did not have time to go a few steps, two more painted birdhouses. Strange somehow, on a small patch in the forest, 4 birdhouses were counted.

Passed by them to the cliff. I wanted to look down to take photos from the top of this rocky ridge, but the stones overgrown with moss and grass on the edge of the cliff seemed to me a very unreliable support, it was easy to stumble and fall down. Therefore, it turned out only such a photo. At eye level, mountain ash, birch, and spruce rise from behind the edge of the cliff. The height of the ridge in this place is probably 8-10 meters. It is difficult to determine by eye in such wilds.

On the edge of a cliff.

Returning from the cliff, we decided to see the birdhouse, which seemed to us of an unusual shape. Wow, he has a face. And more it looks not like a house for birds, but like an idol, well, a forester. Or goblin?

Interesting, of course, and even funny, but somehow it became uncomfortable. What is this place? Again mystical. And thoughts about the witch's mountain, and about shamanic dances, got into my head. Ugh, these are probably the village boys having fun here.

So, what else is a birdhouse? We need to get out of here, otherwise they completely circled us.

They started going down. We passed next to our recent acquaintance, who at the beginning of the journey struck us with her mystical appearance. There she is to the left of Nastya, from this angle the view of the driftwood is not at all intimidating. An ordinary old log, uprooted.

They didn’t go down the path right away, they walked through the Karelian forest along the foot of the stone ridge, enjoying the riot of greenery and fabulous wilds. Admiring how the rays of the sun break through the crowns of trees.

Here our attention was attracted by a tree trunk, covered with a lichen we had never seen before. Lichen leaves are so large, almost half the size of a palm. By the way, the next day we saw exactly the same lichen in the exposition. It is a type of foliose lichen.

The tree turned out to be a rowan. She leaned over, either from old age, or some kind of mountain ash. There are also Karelian birches, maybe it's Karelian mountain ash. From this mountain ash, one can probably study all types of lichens growing in Karelia. Above the leaf lichen, the rowan trunk is covered with fruticose lichens, epiphytes and moss. Here is an instance! It was like being in a museum.

Having marveled at Karelian forest and thinking to myself a bit of mysticism , began to get out to the path. And by the path, what a beauty - thickets of ferns and flowering meadowsweet.

Here is such a mysterious, informative and tasty acquaintance with Karelian forest. And they ate berries, and admired the flowers, and as if plunged into a fairy tale.