On July 2nd, we completed our annual spring maintenance campaign after over a month of work. Beginning on May 30, our field teams cleared competing vegetation around a record 808,446 young trees, giving them the space and resources they need to thrive. This number is a huge increase to the 300.000 trees that were maintained last year. This underscores our commitment to create new forests, not just planting trees.
Maintenance is one of the most important stages of creating a forest. During the first years after planting, young trees face strong competition from surrounding vegetation. Our workers remove grasses and weeds around each sapling, giving them the space, light and resources they need to continue growing. This greatly increases their chances of surviving Armenia's dry summers and developing into healthy forests.
Maintenance is one of the most important stages of creating a forest. During the first years after planting, young trees face strong competition from surrounding vegetation. Our workers remove grasses and weeds around each sapling, giving them the space, light and resources they need to continue growing. This greatly increases their chances of surviving Armenia's dry summers and developing into healthy forests.
This year, nature gave us a helping hand. Weather conditions throughout Armenia have been exceptionally humid, with regular rainfall continuing well into the summer. Current forecasts indicate that the rainy conditions will continue throughout July, which is highly unusual. For our young trees, this is excellent news. The additional moisture reduces water stress during one of the most challenging periods of the year and gives the 1-year-old saplings an even better opportunity to establish strong root systems. At the same time, wild grass also benefits from the rainfall and also grows quickly and strongly. As can be seen in the picture, it becomes so dense that the young saplings, which are barely 10 to 15 cm high, cannot do photosynthesis, so weeding is really crucial to make sure trees have room to develop and are not overshadowed by surrounding plants.
Our workers carried out maintenance operations across five reforestation areas:
Lernajour 4
Lernajour 5
Lernajour 1 & 2
Dzorashen
Urasar
While Lernajour 4, Lernajour 5, and Dzorashen were planted recently, the Lernajour 1 & 2 and Urasar plantations date back to 2022 and 2023. Following last year's monitoring, which identified the need for additional care, these sites were included in this year's maintenance campaign. It is a powerful reminder that planting a forest is only the beginning. A thriving forest is built through years of dedicated care and maintenance.
The combination of careful maintenance and exceptionally favorable weather gives us every reason to be optimistic about this year's plantations.
Our workers carried out maintenance operations across five reforestation areas:
Lernajour 4
Lernajour 5
Lernajour 1 & 2
Dzorashen
Urasar
While Lernajour 4, Lernajour 5, and Dzorashen were planted recently, the Lernajour 1 & 2 and Urasar plantations date back to 2022 and 2023. Following last year's monitoring, which identified the need for additional care, these sites were included in this year's maintenance campaign. It is a powerful reminder that planting a forest is only the beginning. A thriving forest is built through years of dedicated care and maintenance.
The combination of careful maintenance and exceptionally favorable weather gives us every reason to be optimistic about this year's plantations.