"GARDEN OF PEACE"

Evening Post, Volume CXXVII, Issue 131, 6 June 1939, Page 11

"GARDEN OF PEACE"

SUGGESTED TO ROTARY

A proposal that the Wellington Rotary Club should take steps to establish a "Garden of Peace" -was made by Captain S. Holm, president of the Wellington Beautifying Society, when addressing the club at its weekly luncheon today.

"The Garden of. Peace," he said, originated in La Plata (Argentina). It was a symbolic conception of peace, all countries being represented by their' national flower, and united in friendship by the indissoluble bond of Mother Earth. Captain Holm said he did not think that any difficulty would be met with in the acquisition of a suitable plot, and he would commit his society to the supply of some trees. He commended the idea to the club. Incidentally, he. remarked thatNew Zealand had not contributed to the La Plata garden, and he suggested, that some native trees suitable.^ to the climate there should be sent' to take their place along with other trees and flowers from all parts of the world. .

The work of the Wellington Beauti-, fying Society could be explained in two words —planting trees, he said. He reviewed the inauguration of the so-" ciety, and said that in four years it had planted 29,000 trees in and around Wellington. Among donations received were 4000 flower pots. He paid a tribute to the-"help given by Government Departments and local bodies, and in; particular referred to the help given by the Justice Department. Last year, the society had received 17,000 seedlings from the Mount Crawford nurseries,' and 5000 this year. From next, year onwards, it was hoped to receive 20,000 seedlings a year from Mount Crawford, and also to receive seed^ lings from the Wi Tako nurseries. After enumerating the -places in Wellington where the society had planted trees, he said that they were hoping to plant 100,000 trees along the Plim-, merton-Paekakariki highway.

The society was planting . : mostly ~ ; native trees with the idea of preserv-'.".' ing the bird life of--the country. :A ; tree, he. pointed out, was a lasting, monument. . It was estimated that a ■'■[ kauri in Mercury Bay was 3500. years ".. old, and there were other trees' esti- ."1 mated to be 2000 years old. A foreigner 1. 5 recently came here and asked for some '. seedlings with the object of planting c them as a memorial to himself "to be ; visible 1000 years hence. "I hope you " will all plant memorials,": added "Cap- . tain Holm. " , ;