Returning park to native glory

Soldiers Park in Eltham got a bit of facelift this week thanks to the vision of one local volunteer and some helping hands from Eltham Primary School.

Howard Hughes, volunteer co-ordinator of the park in Eltham, says he wants the park to return to it's former glory of a native tree reserve.

"The park is home to several native bird populations and with the addition of more native trees we will attract even more birds to make the park their home," says Howard.

On Thursday morning pupils from Eltham Primary School lined the bank of Soldiers Park and got to work planting hundreds of native shrubs.

"I think getting the pupils involved with the planting will help them take ownership of the project and ultimately it will be them who will get to see the trees grow and the park develop."

Glenn Hanson, community development officer for the South Taranaki District Council, adds "it's the young people in the community who make the most use of the facilities at Soldiers Park and in the future they can tell their families how they were a part of making the park into a reserve".

Glenn helped Howard co-ordinate a group of volunteers to clear the bank earlier this year to prepare it for the planting. "We also had the help of contractor Nikki Ward-Allen, who donated her time to help clear the bank."

Howard and Glenn have been working closely with the Taranaki Tree Trust, who along with the Taranaki Regional Council have sponsored 680 native trees to be planted as part of the project.

The boundary of the park is lined with trees, mostly blue gum and macrocarpa, and Howard says he would like to see the tree line transform entirely into native plants, which he estimates will take around 4000 trees.

"The project will take a couple of years to complete as the boundary of the park goes right up behind the primary school, but this is a great start and we are all excited to see the results."