Mercer Holz and the Hanseatic City of Stendal plant over 3,000 trees in the Stendal Forest

Stendal, March 18, 2025 – Mercer Holz has provided the Hanseatic City of Stendal with more than 3,000 hardwood and coniferous trees for the Stendal city forest. The trees were donated by Mercer Holz as part of the “Growing Forests, Growing Future” initiative. With this long-term program, Mercer is supporting climate-resilient reforestation of German forest areas that have been weakened and destroyed in recent years by severe drought and bark beetle infestation.

“This area of about one hectare was previously home to larch trees that the larch bark beetle destroyed due to the drought,” explains Katja Döge from the Nordöstliche Altmark Forestry Office. ”This particular site offers ideal conditions for creating a mixed forest, which helps to spread the risk of climate change, fosters biodiversity and is ecologically beneficial.”

Mercer donated deciduous trees such as wild service trees, sycamore maples, black walnuts, wild pears, and 450 coastal firs. “The mixture of deciduous and coniferous trees improves soil quality and water storage capacity compared to pure coniferous forests, thus significantly contributing to climate protection,” says Marcel Kraatz, timber purchaser at Mercer Holz.

The last 450 trees were put in the ground today during the planting campaign. Bastian Sieler, Mayor of the Hanseatic City of Stendal, and Martin Stöhr, Managing Director of Mercer Holz, also took part.

Mayor Sieler said: “The planting campaign will help us renew and maintain our city forest for future generations. A big thank you to Mercer Holz for their support.”

Martin Stöhr, managing director of Mercer Holz, comments: “With our initiative, we want to make an active contribution to environmental protection and preserve and maintain the forests as an essential part of our ecosystem.”

Martin Stöhr, managing director of Mercer Holz, plants a young coastal fir in the Stendal city forest.