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A majority of Icelanders among this year’s forest scholarship holders

Date: 2021.04.30

In Iceland, the demand for forest plants has increased in recent years. In Sweden, climate change may bring new fungal diseases to the forest nurseries. These factors were important to two of this year’s scholarship holders when they applied from NordGen Forest and SNS.

This year, a total of 14 applications were received before the deadline for the forest scholarship, which is announced yearly by NordGen Forest and Nordic Forest Research (SNS). Of these, a total of eight scholarships totaling NOK 100,000 were awarded. A large part of the applications this year came from Iceland, five out of eight approved applications were Icelandic. In recent years, the demand for forest plants in Iceland has increased a lot at the same time as there are only two forest plant nurseries in the country. The economic crisis of 2008 destroyed several businesses. Katrín Ásgrímsdóttir is manager at the forest nursery Sólskógar and one of those who received a scholarship. The company, which is based in Akureyri in northern Iceland, has twelve employees and also a market garden.

– Previously, we had 1.5 million forest plants per year, but now we are on the way to five million per year and we must be able to meet an increased demand in a short time. Some from our company will make a trip to the forest nursery in Norwegian Biri, which has increased its production a lot in a short time, says Ásgrímsdóttir.

Katrín Ásgrímsdóttir, manager at the Icelandic forest nursery Sólskógar.

Binds carbon dioxide

An important reason for the increased demand in Iceland is a political decision to bind carbon in the ground by planting forests.

– The state buys virtually all our forest plants. We have a unique opportunity to bind carbon because we have so much open terrain in Iceland. We believe that demand will continue to increase but with only one costumer, it will also be a vulnerable market and we still remember the financial crisis in 2008, says Ásgrímsdóttir.

The study trip is planned to be carried out in September, given that the vaccinations against Covid-19 goes according to the plan. One expectation is that the visit will provide knowledge to develop a more automated production.

– Today, for example, we pack the plants manually so we want to be more automated. Compared to other Nordic forest nurseries, we are a small producer so we try to find a way that suits us. Through the trip, we hope to get ideas on how our work can be more efficient says Ásgrímsdóttir.

Forest plants growing at the forest nursery in Biri. Photo: Inger Sundheim Fløistad, NIBIO.

Impact of fungal diseases

The only Swedish scholarship holder this year is Rebecca Larsson, an industrial PhD student in association with SLU and Svenska Skogsplantor. A large part of her work is focused on studying the impact of fungal diseases on forest nurseries. Among other things, she has set spore traps to see how the fungus spreads, information that she combines with weather data. Larsson has also applied for a trip and she plans to visit three forest nursery schools in Germany that collaborate with Svenska Skogsplantor.

– In Sweden, we have large volumes of small plants, but they often have fewer larger plants in Germany. They have more mixed forest and do not work with clear-cutting and soil preparation in the same way, so then it is important to produce real plants that can withstand competition from other vegetation, says Larsson.

Rebecca Larsson, industrial PhD student in association with SLU and Svenska Skogsplantor

Future problems

Since the forest plants are grown densely in Sweden, it easily becomes damp and there is a great risk of fungal attack. Climate change may contribute to an increase in problems with fungal diseases in Scandinavia.

– If the climate in Sweden gets warmer, you expect fungal diseases from the continent coming here. I am interested in gaining more knowledge about the fungal diseases in Germany and how they deal with the problems, both preventive work and alternatives to chemical control, says Larsson.

Top picture shows a view from the Norwegian forest nursery in Biri. Photo: Inger Sundheim Fløistad, NIBIO.

FACTS

At the end of each year, NordGen Forest announces the forest scholarships in collaboration with SNS. The scholarships are intended to professionals or students in the Nordic countries active in areas such as forest seeds, seedlings, forest rejuvenation or tree breeding. The maximum amount of the scholarships is NOK 20,000. The scholarships holders of this year are listed below:

Bjorn Borgan, Norway, 20,000.

Einar Örn Jónsson, Iceland, 18,000.

Katrín Ásgrímsdóttir, Iceland, 20,000.

Rakel Jonsdottir, Iceland, 10,000.

Rebecca Larsson, Sweden, 8000.

Diana Marčiulynienė, Lithuania, 10 000.

Guðmundur Gíslason, Iceland, 9000.

Álfsól Lind Benjamínsdóttir, Iceland / Norway, 5000.