Written by: Tiina Ynnilä, UEF

On 3 June 2025, the Department of Environmental and Biological Sciences and the Centre for Continuous Learning at the University of Eastern Finland organised a free excursion to the Punkaharju Arboretum as part of ᴇNᴀBʟS’ Finnish Living Lab.

The project offered participants car transportation from Joensuu and Kuopio, as well as a guided tour in the park. Participants were mainly international students from different disciplines like public health, biological and environmental sciences, early language education and intercultural communication, and computing.

After driving a couple of hours and arriving at Punkaharju, the team met its guide Henri Hämäläinen from Natural Resources Institute Finland (Figure 1).

Figure 1

Henri said that the arboretum was established in the 1930s as a sample site for anyone interested in the cultivation of exotic tree species. It facilitated the study of these species’ characteristics and whether they were able to manage in Finnish climate conditions. Today, the arboretum features more than 100 tree species, subspecies of certain species, hybrids of species and several special forms of domestic forest trees.

Participants then started a five kilometer walk in the area and explored different forms of biodiversity, e.g. various growth forms of Norway spruce, Larix stands from different origins and the funny shape of curly birches (Figure 2).

Figure 2

They also met the tallest tree (Larix decidua) in Finland, whose height exceeds 47m, while a trail of senses was also encountered in the forest (Figure 3).

Figure 3

Professor Elina Oksanen presented her common garden research site, where they compare the Finnish and Italian silver and downy birches (Betula pendula and Betula pubescens) growing in Punkaharju Arboretum and study the acclimation and adaptation capacity of birches in warming climate. The participants enjoyed the perfect weather during their picnic lunch, after which they took a group photo with a happy smile plastered on their faces (Figure 4).

Figure 4