Walking through the forest, many people are surprised by the wooden fences around young plantations. Is the forest being closed off to people? Actually, the fences protect the future forest from wild ungulates – moose, deer, and roe deer.

For them, a young pine or spruce is a favorite treat. It is especially dangerous when animals eat the upper bud – the “growth point”. The tree will no longer grow straight and valuable, but will become crooked or die. Moreover, an entire herd can trample the plantations in just a few days, plantations that took years of work to establish.

On one hectare, thousands of seedlings are planted, and protecting them in the first years of life is the main task. There are other methods, but the most reliable and cost‑effective solution is fencing.

Important: such a fence is not permanent. Once the saplings grow taller than a person and become “too tough” for ungulates, the protection is removed. The forest then enters an independent life and no longer fears damage.