Qinngua Valley, Greenland's Only Forest

[SeaBreeze]

The little bit of greenery left in Greenland...

Greenland is actually quite white and blue, due to all the glaciers that cover the world’s largest island like frosting on a cake. But near the southern end, sheltered within narrow fjords, there is still some greenery left.

South of Tasersuag Lake and east of Tasiusaq Fjord, oriented north-south, is a valley about 15 kilometers long that contains the only natural forest in Greenland. Qinngua Valley is protected on either side by tall mountains nearly 5,000 feet high that shields the valley from cold winds coming off the interior. The sea itself is 50 kilometers away. This creates a warm climate favorable to trees such as the downy birch and gray-leaf willow. The lack of strong winds allow the trees to stand up straight. Some of the trees here grows up to 20-25 feet tall. Altogether, over three hundred species of plants grow in Qinngua Valley.

n earlier times, Greenland had a much warmer climate, and trees and plants were much more widespread than they are today. Scientists have drilled holes into Greenland’s two-kilometers-thick glacier and have found plant DNA as well as remains of spiders, insects and butterflies beneath the ice, suggesting that certain regions in southern Greenland was a veritable paradise half a million years ago.

https://www.amusingplanet.com/2019/02/qinngua-valley-greenlands-only-forest.html

 

[Em in Ohio]

The little bit of greenery left in Greenland...





https://www.amusingplanet.com/2019/02/qinngua-valley-greenlands-only-forest.html

This reminded me of a flight that veered off course and flew over both Greenland and Iceland. The pilot quipped about the fact that Greenland wasn't very green, but Iceland showed far much more greenery! It was amusing - and surprising!

"There are ruins of a large Norse farm near the coast which some claim is Brattahlíð, the estate of Erik the Red, who founded the first Norse settlement on Greenland. It was Erik who named the island “Greenland” as a marketing ploy—Erik believed that calling this icy wasteland “green” would encourage others to follow. The similarly deceptively named “Iceland” is another one of Norse’s doing. Iceland’s Viking settlers thought that a morose-sounding name would keep out other settlers looking to settle in new lands. They wanted to keep all of Iceland for themselves."

I have to admit, my impressions were swayed by the deceptive names. I'm just glad that I didn't invest in the wrong properties!

 

[Kaila]

Thank you both, for such interesting and educational information!