Cutting vines helped damaged Borneo forest canopy grow three times faster

Simply cutting back aggressive climbing vines in logged tropical forests allows the tree canopy to recover three times faster than planting new trees, according to a long-term study in Malaysian Borneo.The method, which costs up to ten times less than traditional tree-planting programmes, could provide a highly effective way to restore damaged rainforests and increase carbon storage as the world faces climate change and biodiversity loss.The jungle scaffoldingIn healthy tropical forests, woody vines called lianas play an important role in the ecosystem. They provide food and flowers for wildlife and act as natural pathways through the forest canopy. However, when selective logging creates open spaces and allows more sunlight to reach the forest floor, these fast-growing vines quickly spread.Lianas use surviving trees as supports to climb toward the light.