This year, too, the persistent drought and the lack of precipitation impressively demonstrate the consequences of climate change. Due to the extreme conditions, the spruce, the leading tree in our region, carries hardly any resin and can thus hardly defend itself against the increasing proliferation of the bark beetle. In our homeland, the Bergisches Land, the spruce forests have almost without exception died and have already been cleared over large areas. But where at first a trail of devastation remained after heavy timber harvesters struggled through the steep mountain slopes, the first green shoots are now appearing. It is just over a year since we planted over 12,000 trees in the spring of 2021 together with the Bergisches Land Forestry Association. The young Boker forest is growing unmistakably and the young trees have already more than doubled in size - safely protected by a fence against browsing by deer and churning up of the soil by wild boars. The mixed forest contains maple, beech and chestnut as well as the conifers Douglas fir, larch, coastal fir and silver fir.