By Jiayuan Guo | Program Coordinator
From July 10 to July 26, 2025, the Million Trees Project team visited Inner Mongolia forest sites and conducted surveys on growth, soil, tree cores, and ecology. In the first week, with the assistance of six volunteers, the team surveyed the forest sites that had been planted for over 10 years and were in a stable phase. This included three parts: growth data, soil sampling, and tree cores. The growth survey measured tree height, diameter at breast height (DBH), basal diameter, and tree row spacing. Collecting this data allows for a clear understanding of the forest site growth status and what needs to be considered in subsequent forest maintenance.
The soil survey mainly investigated the accumulation and changes of soils in the forest sites. This included determining the basic soil type, collecting and weighing the surface crusts on the surface, and analyzing the rate of decomposition.
The tree core survey was conducted for the first time this year. By drilling holes in the tree trunks to collect core samples, the team analyzed and determined the tree's growth rate, age, firmness, environmental pollution, and nutrient transport.
In the second week, eight volunteers participated in the ecological survey. Each day's survey began with a hike of several kilometers through sandy terrain, traversing countless rows of trees to find markers for previous sampling points. Once a sampling point was found, the team used a one-meter square sample frame to obtain important data such as plant species diversity and vegetation structure.
From October 14 to November 1, 2025, the Million Trees Project organized and employed three local farmers to conduct random sampling measurements on all the forests planted between 2013 and 2025. During the survey, 22 forest plots were visited, and measurements of over 2,800 standing trees were completed, including measurements of tree height, diameter at breast height (DBH), and basal diameter. It's show that the overall average survival rate of the surveyed forest plots reached 74.53% in 2025.
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