Until a few hundred years ago, the Tatras looked completely different. Instead of numerous pines today, beeches and firs prevailed. Unfortunately, in the 18th and 19th centuries, as a result of the development of several steel mills, the original Tatra forests were almost completely cleared, and the wood obtained in this way was used as fuel for metallurgical furnaces. Natural regeneration of forests was hindered by sheep grazing. So why nowadays the Tatra valleys are covered with trees? One man made it happen - Count Władysław Zamoyski. Unfortunately, after more than 100 years, we know that despite good intentions, not everything has been done well ...
Beech and fir, the basic species that once formed the forests of the Lower Tatra Mountains, have been cut down over the centuries. References to the harvesting of fir and beech wood for the needs of the mining and metallurgy activities developing in the Tatra Mountains date back to the 15th century. The mining, metallurgical and wood industries forced intensive exploitation of forests, especially in the mid-nineteenth century. Shepherding was developing in the Tatra Mountains at the same time as metallurgy and mining. In the 1940s, up to 30,000 sheep were grazed in the Polish part of the Tatra Mountains.
Sheep grazing not only in pastures but also in forest clearings made it impossible to renew trees, especially firs. Another factor causing the devastation of the Tatra forests was improper forest management. In place of mixed beech and fir forests, spruce monocultures were introduced.
At present, the share of beech and fir, two species that make up the forests of the lower montane zone, account for only 2% and 10% of the Tatra forests, respectively. They are mostly young trees with poor fruiting. In addition, seed years, when more seeds emerge, only occur every few years. The potential of natural regeneration and return to the habitats occupied by spruce is rather small. Free places are occupied by spruce bloom, preserving the unfavorable species composition of stands.
Spruce trees artificially introduced into forest habitats in the form of monocultures are susceptible to insect pests and fungal diseases. The large area of single-species spruce stands of older age classes facilitates the spread of parasitic fungi such as the root hub or armillaria. The weakened spruce trees are then an ideal opportunity for the bark beetle and other bark beetles.
Due to the flat root system, spruce trees are very sensitive both to the groundwater level and to root damage caused by fungi. The presence of fungi promotes wind damage. The destruction of solid spruce stands in mixed forest habitats violates the ecological balance.
The presence of spruce trees in the place of beech and fir trees also has other negative ecological effects. The spruce litter slowly decomposes to form an acid, rotting layer. The spruce stand at an early stage of development creates a very large density, blocking the access of light to the forest floor. Due to the long influence of these factors, it is difficult to find any plant on the forest floor. The soil becomes partially green only after the spruce trees reach the age of 70-80 years and the density is loosened. Among the plants that appear, only a very few prove the habitat's former glory.
At the end of the 19th century, the forest areas in the Zakopane estates covered almost 5,500 hectares. The demand for wood by the nearby paper mills and sawmills caused robbery exploitation and destruction of the Tatra forests of the lower mountain range. Excessive felling of trees and thinning of stands favored the development of the spruce bark beetle, as well as soil erosion processes. Water ran down the tree-less slopes, causing floods in the valleys.
The forests were destroyed with unplanned logging: Ludwik Eichborn, a banker from Berlin (1870-1881), Magnus Peltz, a Wrocław merchant (1881-1888), and Jakub Goldfinger from Nowy Targ (1888). The devastating economy of Magnus Pelz has led the forest areas around Zakopane to total devastation. A special government commission stated in a report that the Tatra forests are doomed. The situation must have been serious, since the authorities in Vienna ordered government sequestration, i.e. seizure of assets. In 1888, a compulsory auction of Zakopane properties was announced. They were bought by Jakub Goldfinger, a merchant from Nowy Targ. As a result, the situation became even more dramatic, as the buyer leased two paper mills and the remains of forests in Zakopane, so he could supply them. For formal reasons, however, the court canceled the February auction and set the date of the new one for May 1888.
In 1880, Władysław Zamoyski inherited the Kórnik estate with a collection of works of art and several thousand hectares of fields and forests from his uncle Jan Działyński. Five years later, the Zamoyski family were forced to leave the Prussian state and settle first in Spisz, and then in Kuźnice at the foot of the Tatra Mountains.
When it was possible to buy Zakopane goods, the Tatra Society and the Society for the Protection of the Polish Tatras started to raise money. As these efforts did not bring the expected results, the only chance to keep these goods in Polish hands was to find a Polish buyer. Count Zamoyski made a heroic decision by sending his plenipotentiary Józef Rettinger to the auction on May 9, 1889. After winning the auction, he became the owner of the Tatra forests, and actually what was left of them.
Zakopane forests, destroyed by the barbaric economy of their previous owners, close to destruction, were additionally burdened with debts. After count Zamoyski acquired the remains of forests and rocks, he was accused of extraordinary wealth. In fact, this economically unprofitable Tatra business required a large-scale debt to the Kórnik property. The confirmation of Count Zamoyski's noble intentions may be the letter of his mother Jadwiga Zamoyska to her sister Elżbieta Czartoryska, written shortly after the auction: “It's good that this Polish jewel was saved; I think that Zakopane will be rewarded with time for what has been done to save him, but now it is only a great stone around the neck and you will have to swim under the water vigorously so as not to sink with Zakopane ”.
A completely new economy began with the acquisition of the Tatra forests by the new owner. Restoration and renewal works have commenced in the damaged forests. Intensive control of the bark beetle was carried out, which was supervised by Count Zamoyski personally. Each year, foresters lectured over a dozen thousand trap trees and removed inhabited spruces.
For the sake of clarity, it might be worth bringing closer this fight with the bark beetle. As the insect attacks only weakened trees for various reasons, it eagerly inhabits the cut raw material. Trap trees are placed in front of the main bark beetle swarm, which usually occurs in mid-April and May. Insects biting into the bark are revealed by rusty flour ("sawdust") pouring out of the feeding ground. On both sides of the mother galleries, egg niches are gouged, in which the female lays 30-80 eggs. After 1-2 weeks, young larvae begin to feed in the mouthful, gnawing larval galleries perpendicular to the parent. They form a drawing resembling the lines of a print - hence the "spruce bark beetle". After 3-4 weeks of feeding, the larvae bite the pupa's cradle and after 2-3 weeks young beetles appear under the bark.
As can be seen, removing from the forest or thoroughly debarking inhabited trees with the bark beetle in the larval stage is the only actually effective way to reduce the pest population. Too early debarking of spruce trees may cause adult bark beetles to fly to new trees, and too late - will not prevent pupation and departure of young insects. Removal or debarking of trees abandoned by the bark beetle is of no importance for the protection of the forest and gives a very bad certificate to the forester. It should be added that the season does not end with one spruce bark beetle swarm: in exceptionally warm summers there may be main, sister, second, and possibly second sister swarms.
In 1880, Władysław Zamoyski inherited the Kórnik estate with a collection of works of art and several thousand hectares of fields and forests from his uncle Jan Działyński. Five years later, the Zamoyski family were forced to leave the Prussian state and settle first in Spisz, and then in Kuźnice at the foot of the Tatra Mountains.
When it was possible to buy Zakopane goods, the Tatra Society and the Society for the Protection of the Polish Tatras started to raise money. As these efforts did not bring the expected results, the only chance to keep these goods in Polish hands was to find a Polish buyer. Count Zamoyski made a heroic decision by sending his plenipotentiary Józef Rettinger to the auction on May 9, 1889. After winning the auction, he became the owner of the Tatra forests, and actually what was left of them.
Zakopane forests, destroyed by the barbaric economy of their previous owners, close to destruction, were additionally burdened with debts. After count Zamoyski acquired the remains of forests and rocks, he was accused of extraordinary wealth. In fact, this economically unprofitable Tatra business required a large-scale debt to the Kórnik property. The confirmation of Count Zamoyski's noble intentions may be the letter of his mother Jadwiga Zamoyska to her sister Elżbieta Czartoryska, written shortly after the auction: “It's good that this Polish jewel was saved; I think that Zakopane will be rewarded with time for what has been done to save him, but now it is only a great stone around the neck and you will have to swim under the water vigorously so as not to sink with Zakopane ”.
A completely new economy began with the acquisition of the Tatra forests by the new owner. Restoration and renewal works have commenced in the damaged forests. Intensive control of the bark beetle was carried out, which was supervised by Count Zamoyski personally. Each year, foresters lectured over a dozen thousand trap trees and removed inhabited spruces.
For the sake of clarity, it might be worth bringing closer this fight with the bark beetle. As the insect attacks only weakened trees for various reasons, it eagerly inhabits the cut raw material. Trap trees are placed in front of the main bark beetle swarm, which usually occurs in mid-April and May. Insects biting into the bark are revealed by rusty flour ("sawdust") pouring out of the feeding ground. On both sides of the mother galleries, egg niches are gouged, in which the female lays 30-80 eggs. After 1-2 weeks, young larvae begin to feed in the mouthful, gnawing larval galleries perpendicular to the parent. They form a drawing resembling the lines of a print - hence the "spruce bark beetle". After 3-4 weeks of feeding, the larvae bite the pupa's cradle and after 2-3 weeks young beetles appear under the bark.
As can be seen, removing from the forest or thoroughly debarking inhabited trees with the bark beetle in the larval stage is the only actually effective way to reduce the pest population. Too early debarking of spruce trees may cause adult bark beetles to fly to new trees, and too late - will not prevent pupation and departure of young insects. Removal or debarking of trees abandoned by the bark beetle is of no importance for the protection of the forest and gives a very bad certificate to the forester. It should be added that the season does not end with one spruce bark beetle swarm: in exceptionally warm summers there may be main, sister, second, and possibly second sister swarms.
At the same time as the fight against the bark beetle and the effects of natural disasters (oatmeal, snowfall, damage after an avalanche), Władysław Zamoyski carried out intensive afforestation. The damage to the stands was slowly subsiding and the slopes were covered with young forest. Today it is known that the idea of introducing solid spruce trees, in addition to Alpine origin, to the Tatra forest habitats was a mistake. It seems, however, that this action, for the noble motives of Count Zamoyski, was not entirely in vain: today it is easier to rebuild dying spruce trees than to reforest the Tatra slopes stripped of trees a century ago.
In the vast areas of the Tatra Mountains devoid of plunder of forests, solid spruce trees were introduced mainly thanks to the efforts and commitment of Count Zamoyski. For afforestation, seedlings from seeds of foreign origin, imported from Austria, were used. As part of the afforestation action, in the habitats of the mixed forest in the Lower Regions, in addition to spruce, many species of trees and shrubs, which had not been there before or were rare, were introduced.
Such species that had a different range include, for example, European larch, broad-leaved linden, Norway maple, and green alder. The latter has its natural positions in the Bieszczady Mountains, while in the Tatras it also grows next to the black alder. The Swedish rowan tree planted in Zakopane as an ornamental tree is also found in the Tatra Mountains due to the birds that spread its seeds; there are also positions of artificial planting.
Several American and South European species that were planted in Poland, counting on their high productivity and resistance to diseases, were also found in the Tatra Mountains. Fortunately, their introduction to the Tatra forests did not take place on a larger scale and was rather enriching the species composition.
Such exotic species include Japanese larch, Siberian limba, and green fir. Japanese larch grows quickly and wins the competition with spruce. It suits the Tatra conditions, it is sown abundantly, but it has a shallow root system susceptible to being overturned by the wind. The simultaneous presence of the native European larch and the Japanese larch imported from Asia carries the risk of the formation of hybrids. Douglas fir (fir) green found its way to the Tatra Mountains due to its rapid growth and high productivity, for which it is famous in North America. At a young age, however, it requires a milder climate, hence its low possibility of natural regeneration in Tatra forests.
Other species, alien to the Tatra Mountains so far, are: dune pine imported from Canada, black pine (from southern Europe), and hook pine (from the Alps). Geographically alien trees and shrubs usually have problems with adapting and die after several decades. A greater threat to the natural nature of the Tatra Mountains is the phenomenon of crossing foreign and native species of the same botanical species and the loss of genetic purity of shrubs and trees.
The omnipotent factor determining the nature of vegetation in every corner of the globe is climate. In high mountain ranges, climatic factors change quickly in a vertical system. As you climb, air temperature and pressure decrease, while direct sunlight increases, the growing season shortens, rainfall increases, and wind strengths increase.
The species composition of the primary forest, like that of other primeval forests, was based on the principles of natural selection. Side by side, there are species adapted to local living conditions, and the strongest and most resistant individuals remain within the same species. Dead trees naturally open up space for new generations. The multi-story structure allows optimal use of light and space. As a result, the primary forest is resistant to natural disasters, including outbreaks of harmful insects.
Many species of insects feed on the leaves, in the bast layer under the bark, or deep in the wood. Each of them shows quite a narrow specialization: for example, it inhabits only selected tree species, trees of a certain age, or different parts of the trunk and crown. The topic of forest insects is very extensive, but in a nutshell, it can be said that in a multi-species and multi-generational forest no species of insect pest has a chance to quickly increase its population and threaten trees. The self-regulation mechanism will always work in time and the system will return to balance. An increase in the number of one species entails an increase in the number of its natural enemies.
In mountainous regions, the influence of climate on habitat diversity is shaped by a multi-story system of plant communities. The species composition of forests changes with the height above sea level and in the Tatras, we can distinguish five such plant layers: lower forest, upper mountain forest, mountain pine, mountain, and rocky ground. Due to the availability and the possibility of exploiting forest resources, the lower forest was and still has the greatest importance for the Tatra forests.
Taking into account the natural range of forest tree species and the conditions shaped by the climate, the country has been divided into eight so-called natural and forest regions. The Tatra Mountains are located in Kraina Podkarpacka VIII, in a separate Tatra District. Most often there is a mountain forest in this region suitable for fir, beech, and spruce, which are the main forest-forming species there.
Mixed forests of beech, fir, and spruce, dominated by beech, are natural in the forest habitats of the Tatra Mountains. There used to be a varied forest in the Tatra Mountains, in which these species supported by sycamore trees formed an interrelated system of complex relationships with animals, herbaceous plants, and fungi. Tatra beech forests grew on fertile soils on a substrate rich in calcium carbonate. The remains of natural beech trees can be found, among others Białego Valley, in Suchy Żleb and in Samkowa Czuba. The firs and beeches remaining there testify to the splendor of the Carpathian beech and fir forest. There is also a large amount of dead, decaying wood on the forest floor. It is a living environment for numerous organisms and an example of the circulation of matter in the forest.
Spruce monocultures within the lower mountain region of the Tatra Mountains have not been established for years. However, the problems that arose from faulty forest management in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries have not disappeared at all. Today, the main task in the Tatra Mountains is the conversion of solid spruce forests into mixed forests. For this purpose, the natural sowing of single firs and beeches that remained among the spruce trees is used. In addition, planting of these species grown in nurseries is carried out.
There is no doubt that the repair of the species composition of the Tatra forests is long and labor-intensive. It is not enough to plant young beeches, firs, and sycamores - it is also necessary to ensure that they grow up to generative maturity and start fighting for their position in the forest on their own. The goal will be achieved when, in the place of the gloomy, shady spruce forest, a mixed mountain forest of beech, fir, and spruce with plants and animals characteristic for the habitat appears.
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