Workers in England are spreading seed-filled heather across burned ground to help a damaged forest grow back. In August, a severe wildfire destroyed more than one square kilometer of the New Forest national park after a van caught fire on a nearby road. The flames burned through rare heathland, harmed ancient trees, and damaged carbon-rich peat soil.
To help nature return, specialist teams from Forestry England collected heather with seeds from nearby areas of the forest. They spread the plants across the worst-damaged ground to create a protective mat. This layer shields the soil from winter weather and gives new seeds a chance to grow. The agency used the same method after a fire in 1989, and that area is now fully restored.
Workers are also trying to protect the exposed roots of ancient beech and oak trees. While dry heathland burned quickly down into the roots, wet boggy areas slowed the fire down and suffered less damage. In those damp spots, small plants and wildlife have already begun to return.
Forestry England staff said the forest will take many decades to recover completely. However, Dave Morris, a worker with the agency, explained that nature is resilient and that early human help can give the damaged landscape the start it needs to heal.