Sjöred, Naturreservat

The Sjöred nature reserve is located on a slope next to Mossjön. It is an old beech forest that grows down towards the lake. The trees are around 150 years old and there are also some large oaks together with hazel. A good time to visit the reserve is in the spring when the beech trees open up and the lilies of the valley and white anemones bloom.

At present, Sjöred is fairly unknown. But the area has an attractive location on the slope above Mossjön and is very easily accessible next to highway 150. The reserve's deciduous forests therefore have a good chance of becoming a popular hiking area once signposting is in place and a parking lot has been built.

Enjoy the floral splendor

If you want to relax, it's a good idea to find a drier spot and lie down among the flowers and leaves, look up at the intricate foliage and breathe in the scents of spring. At springs and in swampy areas, the yellow shimmering goldenrod also grows, which adds color to the surroundings with its yellow-green leaves and seed meal. Later in the spring, lily of the valley flowers on the slopes.

Traces from the past

The villages around Sjöred have been populated for a long time. This is evidenced not least by the many ancient remains that can be found around the area's mountains and forests. Some are several thousand years old and date from the Bronze Age, a time when tools were smaller and it was also possible to farm the light soils that today lie in the forest landscape. Even in the nature reserve, the cairns are closely spaced. When an ancient farmer was clearing a field, he removed the stones that were in the way of cultivation and placed them in cairns. Imagine what hard work it must have been to pick up all this stone and put it in a pile.

Beech replaces spruce

Halland's woodland consists largely of planted spruce. There were also areas of spruce plantations in Sjöred when the reserve was purchased. Since these plantations lacked a greater natural value, they have been felled. Instead, game fences have been erected and beech seedlings have been planted in place of the spruce. In the long term, the younger beech forest may become important for the species that currently live in the surrounding old-growth forest.