Newspaper Article 2008 – Land of gentry to people’s forest

Hawke’s Bay Today, Friday, July 4, 2008   13

Outdoors TODAY

Land of gentry to people’s forest

The Guthrie-Smith Arboretum is home to more than 10,000 trees and a fitting legacy of the man himself.

Garden chat
KAY BAZZARD

The Guthrie-Smith Arboretum
Tutira

WITH the lakes Tutira and Waikopiro in the foreground and the Tutira range beyond them, the 1915 homestead of Herbert Guthrie-Smith (who died in 1940) has an enviable outlook. At the time of his death he owned 61,000 acres. In fact, he owned all the lakes, mountains and plateaux within sight of it and many more that are not.

In the time since his death, most of the land was sold, leaving just 220 acres adjoining State Highway 5. The proceeds of the land sales were used to set up and fund the Tutira Park Trust Board. It was Guthrie-Smith’s intention that this land be used for educational purposes and for the public enjoyment of the lakes and today three lakes, Tutira, Whakapiro and Orakai are administered by the Department of Conservation.

Five years ago the trustees of Tutira Park began to plant trees. Their vision: to create an arboretum on this remnant of the original station that would be a fitting legacy for the old gentleman himself. The purpose of the Guthrie-Smith Arboretum is educational, scientific, practical and educational.

The role of establishing the arboretum is that of park trustee Chris Ryan, who with the help of long-term forester Quentin Roberts, determines what will be planted and where, while the curator of the Tutira Park, George Christison, and his wife Kirsty who live in the homestead plant, maintain and administer it.

With no irrigation (water is a scarce resource here) the planting is done by George to a method which ensures the trees’ survival during all conditions. (They do not rely on volunteer tree planters for this reason). It involves removing the turf, preparing the soil, fertilising and mulching the sapling. On slopes, the plant site is level or tilted back slightly into the hill to allow rainwater to pool.

Ryan’s schema for planting is geographical and ensures the most likely strike rate.  Trees are planted in the most suitable site according to the climate of the country of origin, so for example the North American mountain conifers are grouped on the cooler south-facing slopes, Himalayan species favouring alpine conditions on hilltops, Australian and Mediterranean species on the hot dry, north-facing slopes and so on.

So far, 10,000 trees have been planted sustaining remarkable growth in their short lives on this land – Tutira it seems is ideal tree growing country. Seed and plants are sourced from nurseries and privately owned arboreta all over the country and the plant nursery here currently holds 1700 saplings awaiting planting.

A state-of-the-art GPS system locates and identifies individual trees so health and growth can be monitored as they mature. In conjunction with this a comprehensive photographic record is kept. The GPS system was developed by New Zealander Simon Ganton, originally from the Eastwoodhill arboretum and subsequently refined and further developed for Tutira. This allows for the collection of statistical and scientific evidence of the success of otherwise of particular tree species – of great benefit to the farmer or landowner who seeks to reforest their own properties. With tree-planting, an essential offset to carbon credits, this will be useful information.

“With no irrigation (water is a scarce resource here) the planting is done by George to a method which ensures the trees’ survival during all conditions.”

As a modern arboretum, it is not a “collection” of rare trees for display, as at Eastwoodhill, for example. At Tutira, each variety is planted in its own copse, allowing cross-pollination and the setting of seed, which, when collected, can be on-grown for use either within Tutira Park or by others.

The Friends of Tutira support the Trust with fundraising and work days and membership includes year-round access for visits and recreation. The Tutira Park holds open days for the public twice a year, in April and November. Contact Kirsty or George Christison, ph 839 7758.

Tips for success

To ensure the trees’ survival during all conditions

Choose the right species for the site, does it prefer dry, moist cool, hot wind
Consider ultimate height, width or potential shading problems (eg evergreens)
Remove all competing plants and roots by spraying with Roundup and/or removing the turf for at least one metre in diameter.
Dig the hole to the full width
Prepare the soil to a fine tilth, drop in a slow-release fertiliser pellet.
Remove plastic bag, place the tree to the same depth as the bag, secure it with a stake and cover with soil (but don’t compact soil when wet)
Mulch the sapling with fine bark, keeping it away from base of stem.
On slopes, the site needs to be level or tilted back slightly into the hill to allow rainwater to pool.
Use a tree guard to protect from hares or spray

Photo captions –

MASTER PLANTER: Chris Ryan, the Guthrie-Smith Arboretum tree specialist and trustee.

FUTURE FOREST: Recent plantings in the arboretum.
PICTURE / DAVID S. BELCHER

TREE-MENDOUS VISTA: The little church at Tutira surrounded by early plantings.
PICTURE / DAVID S. BELCHER