Today, most ecosystems and landscapes worldwide are affected by human impacts. Consequently, studies about patterns and processes of and within anthropogenic ecosystems and cultural landscapes have to give proper consideration to human impacts and their historical development. Historical ecology is proposed as an interdisciplinary approach for studying interactions between humans and the environment. Three major objectives of historical ecology can be distinguished: a) preserving cultural heritage in ecosystems and landscapes, b) understanding historical trajectories of patterns and processes in ecosystems and landscapes, and c) informing ecosystem and landscape management. In this paper, the application of these three objectives of historical ecology is illustrated with a case study of litter collecting – a largely forgotten traditional forest use in Central Europe.