Romantics Reserve
Rewildening, Regreening, Re-beautening project
in the forests of Vermland, Sweden
A non profit organisation

Background

The artist Maria ”WildHearts” work on the site predates The Romantics' Reserve. The association was formed as a consequence of the immense hard work that she, her husband Johannes, and various volunteers have contributed through nearly thirty years of non-profit labor to turn the place into a green oasis. 

Tens of thousands of visitors have come to wander through WildHeart’s sculpture forest. However, calling the area a ”forest” would have been a stretch. In reality,at this time it consisted of the unfortunately all-too-common spruce monocultures seen throughout our country. But during the unusually warm and dry years of 2018–2023, large parts of these plantations were attacked by the European spruce bark beetle, resulting in the death of hundreds of spruce trees. The monotony of the monoculture was broken, in a natural way.

Instead of following the usual practice in such situations—clear-cutting—Maria and Johannes chose to interpret it as nature making a clear and powerful statement: that something is out of balance, and that plantations are not real forests. Bark beetles are not a catastrophe; they are but a reminder of the real, man-made catastrophe. Right then and there, Maria and Johannes proclaimed the site 'a sanctuary for romantics' (The Romantics' Reserve), and decided to let it become an experimental field for practical rewilding and art. A few years later, now in collaboration with a young arborist, a radio producer, and a forest engineer, that the association was formally established. Since the beginning of The Romantics' Reserve, our work has primarily focused on rewilding, regreening, and rebeautifying the broken nature known as monocultures. We set our minds on recreating a more natural, yet visitor-friendly forest at record speed.

At the time of writing, December 2025, we have planted nearly 4,000 deciduous trees of varying ages and sizes. The smallest reach only a few inches above the soil, while the largest exceed 35 feet. When it comes to moving the largest trees, with root balls weighing over 200 pounds, we've used volunteers – manpower – in order to avoid heavy machinery and the soil damage this often cause. Alder, linden, rowan, maple, elm, ash, birch, willow, oak, wild apple, bird cherry, hazel, beech, whitebeam, bird cherry, and buckthorn. Almost every tree native to Sweden now has a home here. With the exception of a few saplings received as gifts, all these trees originate from the local area. Most of them sprouted and grew in places where they were unwanted—ditches, meadows, etc.— and would have been cleared away if we hadn’t been there to dig them up. Beyond the fact that these trees did not come to us via the nursery industry, they also have the advantage of their genetics already being adapted to local conditions.

As far as possible, we have tried to preserve the dead trees created by the bark beetles. Dead wood, both standing and fallen, is a scarce resource in Swedish forests. The tree itself may be dead, but inside and on the surface of its decaying trunk, life thrives like never before: mosses, fungi, and insects find their homes there, and in them, birds and other insects find their food. Parts of The Romantics' Reserve are, however, a destination for visitors, and visitor safety is important to us. Therefore, we have found it necessary to fell or top some dead trees. No dead wood has left the area, however. It has either been left on the ground where it fell, reused in boardwalks, bridges, and artworks, or buried to increase the soil’s moisture retention and prevent carbon from reaching the atmosphere. Furthermore, some felled trees, along with all their branches and bark, have been turned into massive fungi and insect hotels.

As a sign that we chose the right path forward, we were able to spot the Great Grey Owl as well as the Three-toed and Lesser Spotted Woodpecker on the grounds after only a year. The following year, we had confirmed nesting of the Three-toed Woodpecker, and the year after that, the Great Grey Owl. Since then, the number of species has increased year after year.

Everything that grows begins in the soil. We may think of the forest as its trees, but the real magic happens down in the dark humus where thousands of species of fungi and microorganisms live their secret lives. To increase soil moisture and accelerate the transition from needle plantation to deciduous-dominated mixed forest, we have inoculated the ground with moss-covered deciduous logs, ferns, and various herbs. This, combined with the tons of autumn leaves that we've also moved into the area, seems to have had the intended effect on these subterranean magicians.

In a naturally damp area, we've hand-dug a pond. Calla palusris, marsh cinquefoil, lilies, bulrushes, and water lilies have been planted. The result? Fresh drinking water for large mammals and countless birds. Frogs, toads, and dragonflies have already moved in—and in the summer of 2022, both the Great Crested and Smooth Newt appeared.

We have installed hundreds of birdhouses, insect hotels, small mammal shelters, and specially designed perches on high stumps for birds of prey and owls. The response from the surrounding wildlife has been extraordinary. Birds, insects, and mammals of all kinds have given their resounding approval. Their enthusiastic return has filled us with renewed hope—for the future and for the deeper purpose behind it all.