Today is Earth Day, and we thought a good way to celebrate the day would be to tell you about an event held some time ago, where postcrossers came together to help plant a pine forest in central Portugal. Enjoy this sunny report!
After a hiatus of two years due to the pandemic, it was time to get together again to expand Postcrossing’s tiny forest! So in early February this year, a group of postcrossers gathered once more to plant trees and reforest a part of the old Pinhal de Leiria, an historical forest from the 13th century which was mostly destroyed in a disastrous fire some years ago. It will take years and years for the forest to regain its previous splendor… but you know what they say: “the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, the second best time is now.”
This time, the plot we replanted was in the dunes nearer the Atlantic ocean, which gave it nice views over the sea. (I like to think of all the tiny pine trees growing with a sea view!) All of us moved along the previously plowed rows, taking care not to damage any trees that were already growing on their own. All morning we made holes, put little trees in them and covered them up so that they were protected from the fierce Atlantic winds. Here are some pictures:




We planted around 700 tiny maritime pine trees, also known as “Pinus pinaster”. Maritime pine is a relatively fast grower, and native to the Mediterranean, so it likes our hot summers and rainy winters. It’s also a great tree to hold onto the dunes and help stabilize coastal regions. Talking to the organizers of the reforestation initiative, they told us the seeds that sprouted these baby pines had been sent from the forest that existed here to France before the fire, and were now returning home to be planted here again. Hurray for seed banks!
After a picnic and some coffee, it was time to go back home, with the feeling of a job well done. Maybe something to consider, for a future meeting in your country? We invite you to roll up your sleeves and go for it! 🌲 And if that’s not possible but you’d still like some ideas of things you can do to make this hobby greener, check our Towards a greener planet page! 🌲
PS: All the pictures in this post are by Tetyana (aka tatytrofamets), who did an excellent job reporting on this fantastic day!
70 comments so far
I wish there can be more similar projects in the future, in other countries!
O B R I G A D O !
Here in Russia a few years ago there was an action by Greenpeace to collect acorns in order to plant oak forests in future. I collected acorns under the oak trees in my city.
What a nice project. Well done!
I like the conbination of doing somthing for the earth and the future, for the climat and to safe the soil in a group at a fantastic place!
Imagine: Lots of postcrossers in every country do the same…Let‘s do it!
I am looking forward to get to know the next planting story!
Happy earthday!
For me it was the first time i joined a group of poscrossers, and i’m looking forward to the next…
❤️😀
please count me in for the next planting :)
With all the climate changes it becomes more obvious how nature and human alike need trees and other greens for their existence.
Happy eathday!
I'm not so great with planting, but every time I travel, I donate money to plant trees and sea kelp to more than offset my share of the emissions.
I'm more into avoiding plastic, sustainability and food waste.
Hope there is enough water to let the pines grow!
Thanks again to everyone who made this amazing project happen 🌲
Approximately half of Washington State is forested and several areas that lost trees to one disaster or another continue to have new tree starts planted. In May of 1980, millions of trees were knocked down by the mountain volcano eruption. Mt. St. Helens volcanic eruption area is really looking good, after millions of seedlings were planted, and is very popular to visit. New construction areas require nature improvement. The Oso Landslide area is vastly improved. We breathe out and the trees take it in and give us fresh air to breathe in and continue the process. I mail a postcard and another one arrives.
Happy Postcrossing Always!
Danke an alle, die an diesem Projekt teilgenommen haben.
Thank you all :)
It's a great event
This is so wonderful. A big THANK YOU to all those who joined in on this project.
↑ Back to top ↑