Reforestation in Belgium: very promising, but a challenging start in 2024-2025

Planting trees may sound simple, but in practice we sometimes come up against some tough challenges. In Oud-Turnhout, in Belgium, we’re planting a new forest with our partner Natuurpunt, but a very dry springtime has meant the young forest is not yet developing as we’d hoped. Fortunately, the prospects for the future are hopeful and we can make adjustments to get the forest off to a good start anyway. You can read all about the process in this update.

Why we’re planting new forest in Belgium

In Oud-Turnhout, we’re partnering with Natuurpunt to plant new forest in Landschap de Liereman, one of the oldest nature reserves in Belgium. We’re planting various native species of tree and shrub that are indigenous to the region, so that we can reinforce and expand the existing forest. They include sessile oak, English oak, rowan, small-leaved lime, blackthorn, hawthorn, alder buckthorn and dog rose.

A varied forest like this is much more resistant to the consequences of climate change, such as prolonged drought or periods of heavy rainfall. If one species gets into difficulties, then the other tree species keep the forest going. And the greater the variety, the more plants and animals are attracted to the forest – which is great for biodiversity!

From left to right: red-backed shrikeshrikes, brimstone butterflies and green hairstreaks are examples of birds and butterflies that feel at home in this forest area.

A difficult start

The extremely dry spring of 2025 is a good example of why such climate-proof forests are necessary. Although the saplings appeared to be doing well straight after planting, in the end most of them didn’t make it, due to the prolonged period of dry weather in the spring and summer.

A contributing factor was that the trees were planted relatively late: in February 2025. This meant they had less time to ‘get rooted’ before commencing their first growth spurt in the spring. And as the summer of 2025 was relatively dry as well, many of the saplings weren’t able to recover either – something that generally speaking does happen often. Natuurpunt will therefore replant (refill) the lost saplings in the autumn of 2025.

The new trees are suffering from the dry springtime, as shown by their brown leaves.

Learning from experience and making adjustments

These experiences have taught us that it’s better to plant trees in this location in the autumn. The trees then have more time to prepare for the spring and for their growth spurt. At the same time, choosing the right planting moment in times of climate change is no easy task. For instance, the autumn of 2024 was actually extremely wet, and those conditions are not ideal for planting a new forest.

So in the coming years, we’ll have to be even more flexible with regard to the planting period. We’ll also continue to make considered choices about the species we plant, as it will become increasingly important to plant climate-proof species that can cope well with drought or else with wet conditions.

Species growing along the shaded edges of the forest are doing well!

Hope for the future

Despite all the challenges, there’s positive news as well. For instance, we see that the more drought-resistant species of tree, like rowan and alder buckthorn, are developing considerably better. The same goes for the trees that grow in shadier spots along the edges of the existing forest: their leaves are fresh green instead of brown. Furthermore, one effect of the heat is that berries are growing on the alder buckthorn, for example, which is already being visited by various types of butterfly, such as the green hairstreak and the brimstone.

The fact that Natuurpunt has already successfully restored other forests in this area also inspires great confidence. The forest bordering on our planting location looks vigorous, strong and very green. It’s also visited by all sorts of birds, including ravens, red kites and red-backed shrikes. The latter species had never even been seen here until recently! In short, when a forest has aged a few years, it can easily withstand a dry summer, and it also attracts all sorts of new creatures and plants.

The forest adjacent to the planting location shows hope for the future: this is what the new forest should look like before too long.

We continue to plant

Planting forests requires patience and flexibility. Sometimes everything works first time around, but sometimes we have to plant extra trees or adjust our procedure. That’s what we’re going to do in Belgium. And most importantly, climate change is actually a reason to continue our work, as trees help combat heat and drought, and help prevent flooding when heavy rainfall occurs.

Thanks to your support, we can continue to plant and, step by step, ensure more forests: in Belgium, the Netherlands and further afield. And finally, we’re crossing our fingers for a drop more rain in the spring of 2026!