Surveying Veteran Trees in Preiļi City Park

In order to preserve cultural and natural heritage and develop related tourism services, the Preiļi Municipality Council, based on the medium-term Priority 3, Action Direction 3.4, “Creating the city brand by developing the landscape and the cultural and historical heritage of the Preiļi Manor complex and park” of the “Preiļi Municipality Development Programme for 2018–2024”, is preparing a development concept for the Preiļi Manor estate complex. Among other things, it is essential to identify the veteran trees in Preiļi Park, develop a plan for their maintenance, and complete veteran-tree assessment forms. This is necessary to ensure that these valuable witnesses to the past receive the necessary protection and management measures.

The head of the development concept for the Preiļi Manor complex and park, Sanda Čingule-Vinogradova, explained that the landscape of Preiļi Park is inconceivable without long-lived veteran trees. “As many as 266 years ago, on their wedding day, the newlywed Count and Countess Borch planted an oak and a pear tree by the old manor house. To this day, the only surviving witness to this historical fact is the oak; it is the oldest living organism in the park.

The park in its present form began to be created approximately 200 years ago. This fact indicates that there should be several ancient trees in the area today. Some of them were surveyed many years ago, but their exact locations in the field are not known, and the specified measurements have not been updated. Consequently, surveying veteran trees in the park will make it possible to establish the current situation and may also reveal new veteran trees that are currently unregistered.

A veteran tree is a natural rarity that has survived as a witness to history and is therefore considered a natural monument of cultural and historical significance. Surveying and identifying the magnificent trees in Preiļi Park will make it possible to develop educational trails in the future. In the longer term, it is planned to install a small educational information board next to each veteran tree and develop a route along which everyone will be able to discover the majestic value of the city’s trees,” says S. Čingule-Vinogradova.

Veteran trees possess not only high landscape value. They often provide habitats for rare and protected species of birds, insects, bracket fungi, lichens, and mosses. Of the rare and specially protected species, the hermit beetle (Osmoderma eremita), an invertebrate species, has been identified at two locations in Preiļi Park. Given that veteran trees sometimes die as a result of age, disease, or human economic activity, recording and protecting potential veteran trees is important to ensure that their number does not decrease in the future.

For surveying the veteran trees in Preiļi Park, developing maintenance plans, and completing veteran-tree assessment forms, the offer submitted by SIA “Labie koki” was recognised as the most advantageous as a result of the market research, for a total amount of EUR 2,420 (including VAT).