New life for the old elm in Sliven, which in 2014 won the “European Tree of the Year“ competition in competition from ten other countries. Then the symbol of Sliven slowly began to wither. It came to a public debate about what to replace the tree, because it can no longer be saved. Today, the forecasts that the elm will live are increasingly optimistic, reports bTV.
The man who never stopped repeating that there is life in the old elm is Stefan Stefanov.
“My optimism comes from these two branches, which are about 30 cm high from the ground, and are already 4 years old. We waited long enough and we stuck one of them inside so that it could come out of the bark. These branches came about because the root is alive and wants to live,“ he explained.
There is no person in Sliven who is indifferent to the fate of the old elm.
“Continuous care for the tree is a priority for the municipality, we fight for every opportunity for the tree to be alive. We have a specialist who is also in the municipality on an employment contract. He takes care of the landscape of the entire municipality, but we have also consulted with specialists from the Forestry University,“ said Kamen Kostov from the municipality of Sliven.