By Mbl.is
Copyright mbl
This Saturday, members of the boat unit of the Árborg Rescue Association will ferry forestry workers out to Jóruklettur rock, a rocky island in the Ölfusá river near Selfoss. Their mission is to measure a striking spruce tree that has been growing there and has recently drawn much attention.
For decades, the Icelandic Forestry Association has upheld the tradition of selecting a Tree of the Year — a tree that stands out due to its unique story or remarkable characteristics. These trees are found all over the country. This year, 2025, the honor goes to a solitary spruce on Jóruklettur rock, clearly visible, for example, when driving across the Ölfusá bridge.
A longstanding mystery
“Why a spruce is growing out on Jóruklettur rock has long been a mystery here in town,” says forestry worker Hreinn Óskarsson of Selfoss.
“It may have grown there naturally, but it’s also possible that, many years ago, someone made their way out there in sturdy rubber boots when the river was low, carrying a shovel and seedlings, and planted it. Nobody has ever been able to say for sure.”
Óskarsson hopes that the measurements taken this weekend — of the tree’s height, circumference, and growth rings — will help answer some of these questions.
Ceremony and celebration
The Icelandic Forestry Association will hold a ceremony on Saturday at 2 p.m. on the north bank of the Ölfusá river. Afterwards, a reception will be held in an old barracks building nearby, a former potato storage house that has now been converted into an art space.
Highlighting forestry work
According to the Forestry Association’s website, the Tree of the Year initiative is intended “to draw public attention to the flourishing work being done across the country in tree planting and forestry, and to highlight the cultural significance of individual trees throughout Iceland.”
Last year, a Scots pine in Varmahlíð, Skagafjörður, received the honor. Other past recipients include a bird cherry at the old nursery by Rauðavatn lake above Reykjavík in 2021, and the “Vesturbæjarvíðir” willow grove in Skógar beneath Eyjafjöll in 2018.
These trees, scattered across Iceland, each carry their own stories and continue to bring beauty and environmental benefits to their surroundings.
