Seeds of peace

Pupils plant seeds of peace from survivor trees

Experts at the National Botanic Garden of Wales are inspiring local schoolchildren to grow some special seeds from a tree that survived the A-bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.

Five children from Gwaun Cae Gurwen school visited the Botanic Garden to plant seeds from a ginkgo tree that was just over 1,000 metres from ground zero of the detonation of the bomb.

The seeds were received from Hiroshima by Awel Aman Tawe, a community organisation in the Amman Valley, currently building a zero-carbon arts and education centre in Cwmgors – Hwb y Gors.

The trees will be planted in the garden at Hwb y Gors as a symbol of peace and renewal.

Senior horticulturist Ayshea Cunniffe-Thomas said: “It is always a pleasure to be able to pass on key sowing and growing skills, especially with such a special project.

“The youngsters were very good listeners and did a great job of planting the seeds but we also had time for some fun and a tour of the Botanic Garden,” said Ayshea.

Project manager on the Hwb y Gors is Emily Hinshelwood. She said: “It was a fantastic trip to the Botanic Garden. We had five eager young gardeners planting the seeds and enjoying a tour of the Great Glasshouse.

“It seems fitting that the new generation should be the ones to plant the seeds and we’re eagerly looking forward to watching these green shoots flourish.

“The pupils also planted seeds from a monkey puzzle tree collected from a very old tree in Brecon.”

Louise Griffiths, Hwb y Gors engagement officer, said: “This is the start of our garden project at Hwb y Gors and the Gingko trees will look amazing in the garden. The pupils did a fantastic job planting and they are really keen to return to the Botanic Garden in the spring.

“We’re looking forward to further building our links with both Gwaun Cae Gurwen school and the Botanic Garden.”

Seeds from ‘survivor’ trees are being distributed globally by the Green Legacy Hiroshima project based in the Japanese city. The seeds the children planted that are from a Ginkgo biloba, which was growing next to Hosenbo Temple and was just 1,120m from the blast.

The Botanic Garden is also taking part in the Green Legacy Hiroshima project and is sowing seeds of its own in support of the project’s message of peace and its green legacy.

• For more information, contact David Hardy at the National Botanic Garden of Wales

• Based in Cwmllynfell, Swansea, you can find out more about Awel Aman Tawe here: https://egni.coop/

• To learn more about Green Legacy Hiroshima visit the https://glh.unitar.org/