Dzhasai Woods

Dzhasai Woods (Dzhasayskie Leski) is a small aspen grove in the Adamovsky district of Orenburg Oblast, protected as a regional nature monument. It stands on a plateau-like watershed between the Kumak and Tobol rivers, at an altitude of nearly 400 meters above sea level, 2.5 km northeast of the village of Novosovkhoznoye.

Nature

The grove covers about 3 hectares and forms a single stand of sparse watershed aspen forest — the southeasternmost outpost of forest vegetation in the Orenburg region. Further southeast, toward the Kazakh border, continuous forest on similar watersheds no longer occurs, so Dzhasai Woods marks the boundary between the forest and steppe zones of the region. Its shrub layer includes Tatarian honeysuckle, rosehip, and black chokeberry cotoneaster.

On the exceptionally flat expanse of the Kumak-Tobol watershed plateaus, this grove is almost the only noticeable landmark, standing out clearly from 20-25 km away and often helping travelers crossing the open steppe to orient themselves. The small Karagashka River also has its source among the trees here. In summer, elk come to the woods, since the open steppe offers them nowhere to shelter from the heat, while the shade under the grove's canopy stays cool.

Its status as a regional nature monument protects the stand as a rare forest patch for this part of the region and as a place that preserves the river's source.

History

In the early 20th century, a resettlement village called Dzhanabay stood near the present-day grove; it was also known as resettlement settlement No. 121. According to local accounts, dugouts from that village remained in the area for a long time — traces of earlier life on the open steppe, amid which the grove has always stood out as a noticeable patch of green.

Getting there

Dzhasai Woods lie in the Adamovsky district of Orenburg Oblast, 2.5 km northeast of the village of Novosovkhoznoye, on the watershed between the Kumak and Tobol rivers. The nearest landmark when approaching from within the district is Novosovkhoznoye itself, from which the grove is reached by driving across the open steppe in a northeasterly direction.