ROTARY Club of Wokingham, 1st Wokingham Scouts, and Holt Copse Conservation volunteers have together planted 3,000 purple crocuses in Elms Field.
Led by Wokingham Rotarians, the large group successfully buried 3,000 purple crocus corms in the central Wokingham green space, beside Aldi’s car park.
The work builds upon the past two years’ plantings, and should gradually fill the area out to become a carpet of purple when the bulbs bloom in the spring.
Wokingham Rotary environment lead Cathy Boddy said: “It is such a pleasure to facilitate the working together of Rotarians with other Wokingham community groups, and I look forward to undertaking future environmental projects together with other like-minded folk.
“I hope our crocuses will be enjoyed by the people of Wokingham, and that they serve as a reminder of Rotary’s impact on our global, as well as local, communities.”
The purple crocus is the symbol of Rotary International’s End Polio Now campaign.
Its colour represents the indigo dye added to the little finger of children under five who receive the polio vaccine across the world.
Rotary began a campaign to eradicate this paralysing disease in 1985, with the help of the group’s partners the World Health Organisation, the Gates foundation and others.
The campaign is making progress; wild polio is now only present in Afghanistan and Pakistan, but vaccinations continue because the world will not be free of it until it is totally wiped out.
The Rotarians are grateful for support during the planting project from SHARE Wokingham, which donated soft drinks for the volunteers, and are glad to be working in cooperation with Wokingham Town Council, which manages Elms Field.
The Rotarians are also working with Wokingham Town Council to plant a walnut tree in Redlands Farm Park, which 1st Wokingham Cubs will water throughout its first year
“Planting a tree is just the beginning, as aftercare is crucial to tree survival,” said Rotarian James Berkeley.
“We’ve all seen sad rows of neglected sticks that were meant to be a hedge.
“Back in February, we planted a native species hedge in Howard Palmer Gardens, with help from Freely Fruity and other volunteers.
“We’re pleased to report that diligent weekly watering by the Friends of Howard Palmer Garden means the hedge hasn’t just survived the hot dry summer we enjoyed – it’s thriving.”
Anyone interested in joining future Rotary environmental projects, or who has a project idea or suggestion of a group the Rotarians should work with, can email: contact@rotaryclubwokingham.org.
For more information, visit: rotaryclubwokingham.org
