Forestry

Ånsta has managed its forests during many generations and most buildings on the estate have been built with tree material from Ånsta. Today forestry is its most important income source. Forestry here is PEFC and FSC certified.

In principle all forests on Ånsta is planted, planned and managed by us. Large parts of Ånsta have been grazing fields or pastures for animals where later trees were planted. Ånsta is situated in a region where mankind has cultivated the soil in more than a 1000 years. 

We have a strong drive in managing and using the forest and its raw materials for the generations to come. Certain trees are planted where the best conditions exist. Often it’s spruce and pine but even oak and larch. Other leaf tree species such as birch, elm, aspen and mountain ash also appear by its own reproduction when favourable soil, wildlife and weather conditions. 

We are prone to have a rich flora and fauna in the forest and try to support clove hooved wildlifes natural feed by wild life strips between farming fields and forest, grass rich pastures and leaf trees zones. We have more than 50% pine at Ånsta which is more favourable towards undervegetation compared to spruce. Specially on clearcuts where the sun reaches out the soil provides vegetation for people, insects and larger wild life. We succeed with tree renewals despite large wild life presence. 

We apply machine clearcuts as we see that as the most economic and therefore environmentally more suitable way of taking out the wood. On some parts of the forest, where the conditions allow for it, we use other forms such as continuity forestry or a combination of both machine and continuity forestry. 

At Ånsta you will find many relics of earlier generations usage of forest and land such as cottage ruins, old abandoned hydropower remains, memorial stones common during the Viking Age and ditches, all witnessing centuries old human presence and impact in this part of the world living on and off the land. We feel a great responsibility to preserve this cultural heritage for future generations and will continue to endeavour with using the land we own with great care.