The Telkkämäki Nature Reserve (in

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

: ''Telkkämäen luonnonsuojelualue'' or ''Telkkämäen kaskiperinnetila'') is an

open-air museum An open-air museum (or open air museum) is a museum that exhibits collections of buildings and artifacts out-of-doors. It is also frequently known as a museum of buildings or a folk museum. Definition Open air is “the unconfined atmosphere� ...

and a heritage farm in the municipality of

Kaavi Kaavi is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the Northern Savonia region. Kaavi is also a part of historical Karelia. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . It is fr ...

, in the

Northern Savonia North Savo (or Northern Savonia; fi, Pohjois-Savo; sv, Norra Savolax) is a region in eastern Finland. It borders the regions of South Savo, Central Finland, North Ostrobothnia, Kainuu, and North Karelia. Kuopio is the largest city in the r ...

region of

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. It covers one square kilometer (0.39 sq mi). The reserve was established in 1989, allowing visitors to see how people lived and farmed when

slash-and-burn Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed veget ...

agriculture was practiced in

Eastern Finland Eastern Finland ( fi, Itä-Suomen lääni, sv, Östra Finlands län) was a province of Finland from 1997 to 2009. It bordered the provinces of Oulu, Western Finland and Southern Finland. It also bordered Russia to the east. History On Septemb ...

in the 15th century. Some areas of Telkkämäki are still burned annually. The area is managed by a state-owned enterprise,

Metsähallitus Metsähallitus (Finnish) (Forststyrelsen in Swedish, Meahciráđđehus in Sami, ''"the (Finnish) Forest Administration"'') is a state-owned enterprise in Finland. Its two main tasks are Parks & Wildlife Finland to manage most of the protected are ...

, which manages most of the protected areas in Finland.

Natural environment

Telkkämäki Nature Reserve is mostly covered by green-leafed forests, its most typical trees are

alder Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few sp ...

and

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains ...

. There are also many damp forests around the farm. Wild berries such as wild strawberries ('' Fragaria vesca'') and wild blueberries (bilberries) grow in the forests of Telkkämäki. Among the many bird species in the reserve are the

chaffinch The common chaffinch or simply the chaffinch (''Fringilla coelebs'') is a common and widespread small passerine bird in the finch family. The male is brightly coloured with a blue-grey cap and rust-red underparts. The female is more subdued in ...

, the common blackbird and the

willow warbler The willow warbler (''Phylloscopus trochilus'') is a very common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe and the Palearctic, from Ireland east to the Anadyr River basin in eastern Siberia. It is strong ...

. The

Arctic warbler The Arctic warbler (''Phylloscopus borealis'') is a widespread leaf warbler in birch or mixed birch forest near water throughout its breeding range in Fennoscandia and the northern Palearctic. It has established a foothold in North America, b ...

(''Phylloscopus borealis'') and the

greenish warbler The greenish warbler (''Phylloscopus trochiloides'') is a widespread leaf warbler with a breeding range in northeastern Europe, and temperate to subtropical continental Asia. This warbler is strongly migratory and winters in India. It is not u ...

(''Phylloscopus trochiloides'') also nest there. There are three brooks in the area.

Slash-and-burn agriculture

Metsähallitus has been practicing slash-and-burn agriculture at Telkkämäki since 1993.

Turnip The turnip or white turnip ('' Brassica rapa'' subsp. ''rapa'') is a root vegetable commonly grown in temperate climates worldwide for its white, fleshy taproot. The word ''turnip'' is a compound of ''turn'' as in turned/rounded on a lathe and ...

and rye are typical crops grown on a Telkkämäki farm. The rye is indigenous to this area, and samples are saved in a gene bank.

Barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...

buckwheat Buckwheat (''Fagopyrum esculentum''), or common buckwheat, is a flowering plant in the knotweed family Polygonaceae cultivated for its grain-like seeds and as a cover crop. The name "buckwheat" is used for several other species, such as ''Fagopy ...

, flax and

oat The oat (''Avena sativa''), sometimes called the common oat, is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name (usually in the plural, unlike other cereals and pseudocereals). While oats are suitable for human con ...

are also grown on the fields of this demonstration farm. There are many fields and meadows in the Telkkämäki heritage farm because of the mowing and grazing of the grounds associated with agriculture. Plant species in the old slash-and-burn clearings include the bluebutton (or field scabious), common yarrow (''Achillea millefolium'') and rough hawkbit. Meadow flowers to be found in Telkkämäki include the

fireweed ''Chamaenerion angustifolium'' is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant in the willowherb family Onagraceae. It is known in North America as fireweed, in some parts of Canada as great willowherb, in Britain and Ireland as rosebay willowherb. ...

, meadow buttercup,

wild angelica ''Angelica sylvestris'' or wild angelica is a species of flowering plant, native to Europe and central Asia. An annual or short-lived perennial growing to a maximum of , it has erect purplish stems and rounded umbels of minuscule white or pale ...

and red campion. The bristly bellflower (''Campanula cervicaria'') grows in Telkkämäki. It is a threatened species in Finland.

Sights

There is an authentic farm and farmyard in Telkkämäki Nature Reserve that dates to the beginning of the 20th century. In the summer, Telkkämäki is a lively sight with farm animals such as the

finnhorse The Finnhorse or Finnish Horse ( fi, suomenhevonen, literally "horse of Finland"; nickname: ''suokki'', or sv, finskt kallblod, literally "finnish cold-blood") is a horse breed with both riding horse and draught horse influences and characteri ...

, eastern finncattle and

finnsheep The Finnish Landrace, Finn or Finnsheep is a breed of domestic sheep native to Finland. It is one of several Northern European short-tailed sheep breeds, but is notable for its high incidence of multiple births – it is common for a ewe to ...

on the fields. There are also some hens and a rooster. There are two marked nature trails through the fields and forested land. It is possible to see the areas which have been molded by slash-and-burn fires. In the summer there is a Metsähallitus guide in Telkkämäki.

Gallery

Telkkämäen lampaita.JPG ,

Finnsheep The Finnish Landrace, Finn or Finnsheep is a breed of domestic sheep native to Finland. It is one of several Northern European short-tailed sheep breeds, but is notable for its high incidence of multiple births – it is common for a ewe to ...

of Telkkämäki. Gemeine Schafgarbe, weiss - gross.jpg , Common yarrow (''Achillea millefolium''). Fringilla coelebs Oulu 20110418.JPG ,

Common chaffinch The common chaffinch or simply the chaffinch (''Fringilla coelebs'') is a common and widespread small passerine bird in the finch family. The male is brightly coloured with a blue-grey cap and rust-red underparts. The female is more subdued in ...

(''Fringilla coelebs''). Suomenhevonen - Finnhorse 3.jpg , A

Finnhorse The Finnhorse or Finnish Horse ( fi, suomenhevonen, literally "horse of Finland"; nickname: ''suokki'', or sv, finskt kallblod, literally "finnish cold-blood") is a horse breed with both riding horse and draught horse influences and characteri ...

. Kaskialue Kaavin Telkkämäessä (2013).JPG , Slashed-and-burned soil. Ruis.jpg , Rye

References

External links

English info of the Kaavi municipality
at Kaavi.fi, archived by the

Wayback Machine The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by the Internet Archive, a nonprofit based in San Francisco, California. Created in 1996 and launched to the public in 2001, it allows the user to go "back in time" and see ...

Video of slash-and-burn
at Telkkämäki in 2012 {{DEFAULTSORT:Telkkamaki Nature Reserve Agriculture in Finland Geography of North Savo Kaavi Living museums Natura 2000 in Finland Open-air museums in Finland Protected areas of Finland Protected areas established in 1989 Tourist attractions in North Savo