Boomberge

The Boomberge are a terrain characterized by inland dunes between the rivers Ems and Lutter south of Harsewinkel, Gütersloh district, North Rhine-Westphalia. Since 26 July 2004, the 118-hectare site has been designated as a nature reserve.
The Boomberge were formed towards the end of the last ice age 10,000 years ago. As the ice melted, water-rich rivers formed, carrying large amounts of sand with them. This sand was deposited on the banks and was blown into dunes. With the warming, a heath landscape was created, which was used as pasture for flocks of sheep from the Middle Ages until the beginning of the 20th century. Later, the area was reforested mainly with pines. In the meantime, oaks, birches, rowans and buckthorns also grow in the Boomberge. In the south of the area there is sandy nutrient-poor grassland, in the northeast an alder swamp forest, in the east a vegetation-free sandy area and an artificially created still water.

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