Sjö, Naturvårdsområde

Sjö Nature Reserve is an old cultural settlement with early traces of man. The area has been protected since 1988 when Sjö became a nature conservation area. The nature reserve is located next to Lake Unnern and here you have the opportunity to see several interesting bird species.
On a hill in the northern part, there are some terrace-like, very small and narrow fields. Between these, moss-covered stone piles, known as cairns, lie densely. The cairns indicate that the land was once cleared of stones to make way for cultivation. The rest of the reserve consists of beech forest, oak forest and mixed forest. From Sjö you have one of the most beautiful views of the area over Unnen. Unnen is an approximately 25 meter deep so-called clear water lake.

Rich bird life

The landscape around Lake Unnen provides conditions for a rich bird life. Here you will find, among other things, greenfinch, lesser spotted woodpecker, lark falcon and several species of songbirds. With a little luck, you can also see species such as osprey, Eurasian bittern, heron, common tern and little auk from the shore.

Old cultural settlement

The area around Unnen is an old cultural settlement with early traces of man and various ancient remains have been found here. For example, there is a cairn and a stone circle, graves for one or more dead people. They probably date back to the Bronze Age or early Iron Age. However, it is not known exactly when the first farmers came to Sjö. The oldest traces of cultivation are found in an area that is now overgrown with old beech forest. There are many cairns and the remains of old fields can be seen under the beech leaves.

The farms were abandoned

By the middle of the 19th century, these farms were abandoned. This is known because Sjö's properties were mapped in the mid-19th century, when the legal parcel was to be implemented. By this time, a new, distinctive cultural landscape had emerged around the two farms in the area. Closest to the farms was the common land, which consisted of fields and meadows. Cattle were grazed in the woods outside the fields in summer.

The last new plantings were made at the end of the 19th or beginning of the 20th century. In the post-war period, fields and meadows have largely grown back into deciduous forest. However, some parts have been grazed and the landscape has remained open to this day.

Flowering fields

Sjö is made up of the area that used to be the old inägorna. The vegetation is therefore largely a result of the cultivation, mowing and grazing that took place for many generations. The fields that have not yet grown back with forest are flower-rich areas. They include dogbane, buttercup, St. John's wort, teveronica and field bindweed. But there is no distinct haymaking flora, as it has been too long since haymaking ceased. However, the orchid night violet still grows here.

Between the fields grows deciduous forest with oak, aspen, birch and hazel. There are many herbs on the ground, such as lily of the valley, wood anemone, sorrel, squirrel berry, wood sorrel and meadow celandine.

Both nature conservation area and reserve

Sjö has been protected as a nature conservation area since 1988. In 2012, the area of protected land was expanded with additional forest areas. The forested areas (25 hectares) are classified as a nature reserve, while the agricultural landscape remains a nature conservation area. The map in the decision shows the boundaries of the old nature conservation area.

Camping in the reserve but not in the nature conservation area

In the part classified as a nature reserve (see decision map), camping is permitted under the right of public access. However, camping is prohibited in the nature conservation area.