• Howick and Pakuranga Times
A team of students at St Kentigern College put in the natives along the Tamaki River boundary of the college campus by the Rotary Walkway on Saturday.
About 30 of the shrubs, which were planted by the school in Pakuranga in October 2009, were torn out of the ground and thrown into the river.
“The trees are needed to stabilise the bank,” says Greg Noble, St Kent’s property manager.
“We are disappointed about the vandalism. We have been making an effort to improve the look of that part of the walkway and to stabilise the bank.
“We have no idea who is responsible for ripping them out and throwing them in the river.”
Ground staff at the school did the original planting, but Mr Noble says it was decided the replanting was a “nice opportunity for the students to volunteer for the job”.
So Mark Robinson, the school’s teacher service co-ordinator, organised the project.
The trees were part of a larger purchase from a nursery in May 2008 by St Kent’s in Remuera to commemorate the 50th anniversary of that school last year.
They were repotted and nurtured by boys at the school.
Part of the stock was used for fundraising, some were planted at the Remuera school and the rest were donated to the college in Pakuranga.
“A smaller bushy variety [metrosideros springfire] is suitable for the environment because of its compact size,” Mr Noble says.
“Traditionally the site was regarded as the back of the college. Now that the walkway is in place with more pedestrian traffic, the back boundary is more visible and we want to make an effort to improve it.”
