ACCLIMATISATION GARDENS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXXI, Issue 15333, 16 June 1910, Page 9

ACCLIMATISATION GARDENS.

PROPOSED REMOVAL FROM DOMAIN. GREATER utility urged. COST OF UPKEEP TOO HEAVY. A proposal to modernise the Acclimatisation Society’s Gardens so that they may bo moro efficiently used for the brooding of trout and the rearing of wildfowl was mooted at last evoning s meeting of the Society, the' proposal carrying with it the removal of the Sociotyhs operations from the corner of the Domain on Riccarton Road allotted to them to more compact and less attractive surroundings elsewhere. The proposal was introduced by Mr C. J. Sloman, chairman of the Garden Committee, who said that the committee was of opinion that the Society should seriously consider the position relative to the future improvement of the gardens, and hi view of the uncertain tenure of the Society and tho expense of maintaining tho gardens as a toublic attraction. The present system >f turning out fry was not at all suitable. Possibly it was 10 per cent better than if the whole matter were-left to Nature, but if yearlings wore turned out the Society would do 400 per cent better than that again. New races for the purpose, and an increased supply of wator would cost from £SO to £OO. In tho next two years provision would liavo to he made for building a new house, and tho hatchery required attending to, as well as a number of tho fences. Many of tho bird enclosures required cflncroting, as a tremendous numbor of birds were being lost by the depredations of rats. The wells had been cleaned without effect, and now wells would have to bo punk. Tho Society at one time had carried 1700 large fish, but it could oarry nothing like that number now, and the 1700 trout in tho Gardens were two-year-old brown trout, that required vorv little water space, and 1700 big fish would require a tremendous Increase of water space, necessitating new deep wolls. A large quantity of small metal was wanted for the paths and shingle for the ponds. Tho Society during tho next two or three years would have to spend £7OO or £BOO at a low estimate, bun the committee would hot recommend the Society to spend a half-penny, because it ' • ’ ’ ~

had absolutely no security, and might have to stop its new races as it had bad to stop other races. The .Domains Board that races might be put down, but that if a tree allowed .signs of injury from water it would have to be stopped. Tho Society’s tenure was had. The ponds and the races were in an obsolete condition, and had been put in haphazard wherever there was a depression, but it tho ponds were arranged in tho modern way, alongside one another, a great deal of space would bo saved, and the same tiling applied to races. Tho Society was also troubled with a great deal of extra labour not met with in modern methods. Where there were so many trees a tremendous amount of time was spent in tho autumn in cleaning leaves from tho screens, or a heavy wind in tho spring would cause a great fall of ash leaves, which contained some poison that killed tho young trout. This made the committee think that tho Society had its gardens in a had position. In addition, overy breeding pond required a gravel bottom, and tlio Society had had very peer success with its landlocked salmon on account of the mud bottoms of the pond- The wild fowl would do much better, also, if they wore away from tho deep ponds. Christchurch was tho only place v. here mallards could not bo bred, and it might be that the eggs, being laid in deep water, were lost. An attempt had been made to breed in tho natural way alongside tho river, but tho Domain Board had insisted on tho removal of the cover as scon as it grew. Tho Society had been greatly helped bv the granting of a Bite in tho early days, but even if only £SO had been spent on land at that time it would have had a great amount of unearned increment by this time.. To keep tho place looking decent the Society paid £l5O a year, practically given to the public, for it was not spent on acclimatisation work. This would have to ho stopped. This expenditure had been started in the Exhibition year, when it was necessary to do something or nothing at all, hut it alono would pay the interest on £3OOO expended in purchasing a site and providing tho necessary appointments. The Domains Board apparently seemed to think that it existed only to grow firewood, and the more trees it could grow to tho .acre tho better. This was so in the Society's ground, and tho Society sometimes lmd to burn trimmings and screenings. On ono occasion when it had asked for timber for fencing it had been told that it could have tho timber if it paid for it. Tlioro was a special enclosure where the Society had attempted to rear ducks, but the Beard had complained that it was untidy, al-though-it was necessarily untidy to he of any use. It had had to bo abandoned because of the weasels and cats, and for this reason was apparently too near the city. Had the Society struck out by itself ten years ago it would now have had a considerable asset, and the same might ho said of the next ten yeart. The committee suggested that a 'sub-committee should he appointed to go into tho question. It was obvious that the Society must stop spending its revenue in the way it had been spending it.

In reply to a question as to security for a loan tlio chairman said that tho Society would I’.avo a certain amount in hand, but it would ho better to ascertain first whether tho Garden Committeo was right. Tlio site would have to be near tho railway, and nettoo far out from tho city, and should liavo somo promise of increasing value. Mr H. M. Cotton said that it would be of great advantage to have a new site. At present tho Society could* do nothing without tho consent of the Domain Board. The Board’s object was to beautify the place, whereas the Society did not desire trees at all. Tlio Society had had to abandon races on

account of rotten roots. Dr Moorhouso and Messrs G. B. Ritchie, C. J. Sloman, IT. M. Cotton and L. A. Shand were appointed a committee to go into the matter and report.