The trunk of the lancewood growing beside our garage has become massive over the 20 years it's been growing there; muscular, sinewy, venous - not sure how best to describe it, but it's certainly very strong and very durable, live or cut. This one won't be felled, nor will its mate that grows one metre away. Another fine pair.
2 comments:
On the subject of plants and bushes was shocked to see the devastation of the flax bushes along the road to Riverton today. We are just back from a holiday to the other side of the world and were impressed with the lengths people are now going to protect their environment. Even in the suburbs of London you can see people in the green spaces gathering blackberries and they have grown to love the spaces and trees.
The flax bushes have stood proudly along the Riverton highway for much longer than the 40 years I have lived in the south and seem to fit with the area. Obviously having a flax mill in the area meant there were a lot more at one time. But they did a great job along the roadside without shading the pavement and causing ice patched and no doubt suited the farmers during lambing.
Its also one of the main routes tourists take into and out of Invercargill and you can only wonder at what they think when they see the dying flaxes. Looks disgusting in a land which is meant to be about protecting our environment and for what possible reason. And what about the many birds that feed in the flaxes?
Environmental bloody vandalism
Hi Philip
I couldn't agree more, in fact, while you away, The Southland Times printed a letter (below) from an equally-incensed Southlander on the very topic :-)
If you were to send your thoughts to them also, we'd be on the way to starting a conversation about this stupidity.
All across Southland, alongside of every road, flaxes are dying; hundreds and hundreds of them, drenched in herbicide spray and killed. As they turn yellow and shrivel, the birds that used to sip nectar from the flax flowers; tui and bellbird, will go hungry, even as the Government's expensive “Bring Back the Birds” programme is rolled out, and the pleasure Southlanders felt in seeing these iconic plants, taken from us now in the name of “public safety” or whatever justification the road managers offer up to explain the mass-spraying of the flaxes, will be lost as they collapse, die and rot beside our roads. Everywhere you drive, you'll see the dead and dying flaxes. Will the sight gladden the hearts of us locals? Will tourists delight in what they see as they drive through our countryside? Is there anything at all good to be said about the destruction of our roadside flaxes? I doubt it.
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