Forest of Peace, Remembrance & Community at Plimmerton Domain/Taupo Swamp
Planting Celebration – Forest of Peace, Remembrance & Community at Plimmerton Domain/Taupo Swamp – 10,700 plants and counting.
On a beautiful sunny Sunday afternoon, 26 June, we had a wonderful celebration of the first two years of planting of the “Forest of Peace, Remembrance and Community Forests” at Plimmerton Domain and alongside Taupo Swamp. Project co-organiser, Bill McAulay welcomed all and pointed out that we had representatives from Porirua City Council, local Rotary clubs, Rotary District and Rotary International.
We proceeded with a karakia from club kaumatua, Dexter Trail. This was a very timely connection with Matariki, planting and commencement of a new year. Unfortunately, Ngati Toa Rangitira Callum Katene was a last minute withdrawal due to Covid.
PCC Councillor (and club member), Euon Murrell talked about the connections between these plantings and the long-term riparian planting work being carried out by PCC, Sustainable Coastlines and Ngati Toa for the improvement of Porirua Harbour.
Club President, Kay Phillips acknowledged the many dignitaries attending the event and pointed out that we have planted 10,700 stems (trees, flaxes, toitoi, Carexes) since commencing in 2020 and expressed her appreciation of the amount of volunteer work done by Rotarians from the Plimmerton and Porirua Clubs.
She said “There is a strong environmental connection between the Taupo Swamp which bounds this Domain, the Taupo Stream beside us and the Porirua Harbour (Te Awarua-o-Porirua) – which are supported by Porirua City Council, Ngati Toa, our local iwi or tangatawhenua, Friends of the Taupo Swamp and the two Rotary Clubs in Porirua. Recently the Government committed $3m over 5 years to The Porirua Harbour Riparian Management Programme, to complement the $4.8 m already voted by PCC. This will be run jointly by Porirua City Council, Sustainable Coastlines and Ngāti Toa Rangatira over the next 16 years. As, Ngati Toa CE, Helmut Modlik says “Toitū te Marae o Tāne, Toitū te Marae o Tangaroa, Toitū te Iwi - protect and strengthen the realms of the Land and Sea, and they will protect and strengthen the people”.
Kay then introduced Dr Russ Ballard as chair of the Rotary Forests of Peace, Remembrance & Community Trust.
Russ traced the background to the formation of the Trust as a 2021 Rotary Centenary Project, the Trust’s wrangling of government financial support, the support role of Conservation Volunteers NZ, negotiations with local councils and described how the planting of this forest at Taupo Swamp fits with other planting projects around Aotearoa/NZ.
The next speaker was Dr Jessie Harman who is a member of the Rotary Club of Wendouree Breakfast, Victoria and the first female Director to represent Zone 8 (Australia, New Zealand and New Guinea). Jessie talked about how many Rotary clubs have been involved in community planting projects and the recent changes with Rotary International having just set ‘Environment’ as another Rotary pillar. She then unveiled a commemorative plaque.
The next task was for six trees to be planted by Jessie, Russ, Kay, Denise (President-Elect), Kath Beattie (Area Governor) and Euon.
Finally, Mark Wheeler (District Governor) made a surprise Paul Harris Fellowship Award to Russ Ballard in acknowledgement of his contribution to the Rotary Centenary Forests Project.
Calling All Puzzle Masters! Can You Solve This?
When John was six years old he hammered a nail into his favorite tree to mark his height.
Ten years later at age sixteen, John returned to see how much higher the nail was.
If the tree grew by five centimetres each year, how much higher would the nail be?
Do you think you know the answer to our daily riddle? Don't spoil it for your neighbours! Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm.
Want to stop seeing riddles in your newsfeed?
Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.
What's your favourite recipe for courgettes?
Kia ora neighbours. If you've got a family recipe for courgettes, we'd love to see it and maybe publish it in our magazine. Send your recipe to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz, and if we use it in the mag, you will receive a free copy of our January 2025 issue.
Live Q&A: Garden maintenance with Crewcut
This Wednesday, we are having another Neighbourly Q&A session. This time with John Bracewell from Crewcut.
John Bracewell, former Black Caps coach turned Franchisee Development Manager and currently the face of Crewcut’s #Movember campaign, knows a thing or two about keeping the grass looking sharp—whether it’s on a cricket pitch or in your backyard!
As a seasoned Crewcut franchisee, John is excited to answer your lawn and gardening questions. After years of perfecting the greens on the field, he's ready to share tips on how to knock your garden out of the park. Let's just say he’s as passionate about lush lawns as he is about a good game of cricket!
John is happy to answer questions about lawn mowing, tree/hedge trimming, tidying your garden, ride on mowing, you name it! He'll be online on Wednesday, 27th of November to answer them all.
Share your question below now ⬇️
Loading…
