April Planting Program in Zala County

The 10 Million Trees Foundation started its planting program in April with 2,500 seedlings of native trees planted in Bezeréd, Zala County.

According to a statement sent to MTI by the organization, a forest strip of native species was established on the property of a young farmer couple, which helps both farming and the protection of the environment.

Dániel Szecsődi and Eszter Lehoczki moved to the tiny village six years ago, where they initially grazed five hectares of land, and since last year have been keeping 12 hectares of native Carpathian pine cattle, goats, pigs and chickens in the open air.

Balázs Bozzay, forestry technician, tree care engineer and an expert of the 10 Million Trees Foundation, said that in Bezeréd, too, native tree species and shrubs – from native seedling gardens – were planted, including stalkless oak and cherry oak, field silt, wild pear, wild holly, resonant poplar, as well as celandine, hawthorn and red-ringed sumac. He stressed that afforestation helps both to reduce erosion, better retain precipitation, restore soil life and restore habitat for animal and plant species and their communities. He added that, together with additional tree planting in the future, this area will have a higher biodiversity and be more resilient to increasingly extreme weather conditions than intensively used grassland.

The primary goal of the 10 Million Trees National Community is to plant 10 million trees in Hungary, involving as many people as possible in the program. The foundation's community is currently present in almost 160 municipalities, planting trees in 50-60 locations each season, including public spaces, educational institutions and social institutions. According to their information, in the near future they will plant a forest in Bátmonostor, near Baja, and in the fall, they will continue the work in several places, including the extension of the Zala wood pasture.