By Tim Bos | Relationship Manager
Dear nature-loving friends!
Winter has come to the Peruvian Dry Forests, the coolest season starts over here in June and lasts normally until November. The coolness is relative however, with average maximum temperatures of 21-22 degrees C (~70 Fahrenheit) and 16-18 degrees C (60-65 Fahrenheit) during the night. The cooler temperatures somewhat reduce evapotranspiration and therefore make this the best season for tree planting activities, although bright skies and a burning sun still make this a challenging endeavour.
In the last update we told you about the tree nursery that our communities were able to set up with your help. Up to now, we have been able to plant more than 150 trees from our nursery in areas identified as priority for forest restoration. Furthermore, an additional 320+ fruit trees and native trees were distributed among the partner communities, in order to reforest locally important areas and provide community members with a valuable source of nutritious fruits.
Besides planting trees, we were able to conduct various Assisted Natural Restoration campaigns, also known as Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR), a technique that has proven a very effective way to regenerate dry forest ecosystems. With FMNR, instead of planting new trees, already present small trees and shrubs are pruned in such a way that their growth is stimulated, transforming them from bushes into real trees. This technique is where necessary combined with fencing off of specific trees or areas, in order to protect them from grazing animals and further encourage their development.
Next to restoring forest areas, with your help and that of other donors, we were able to conduct various forest patrols and tree plantation monitoring visits; follow up on improved stoves that were installed in the homes of more than 80 community members; train farmers on agroecological farming methods; and teach a total of 235 primary school children about the importance of dry forest conservation.
Do you want to stay up to date about our Dry Forest Project and A Rocha Peru’s other projects? Please sign up for our newsletter here. If you want to contribute more to our work, e.g. organise a fundraising event or maybe even do some volunteering work for us? Send a direct mail to tim.bos@arocha.org.
Talk to you soon!
The A Rocha Peru Team
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