When the trees are named

KOCHI:  Under the Kochi Corporation’s ‘INTERACT-Bio’ project, promoted by the South Asia chapter of International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), a tree naming ceremony was held at the Subhash Park on the other day. The event, inaugurated by Justice (Retd) Sukumaran has also launched a booklet with the details of over 50 species of trees at the park. 

“Along with the initiative, we are planning to name the trees on streets as well. People should understand the importance of these trees in disaster management,” said Mayor Soumini Jain at the event. ICLEI South Asia executive director Emani Kumar and Corporation standing committee chairman K V P Krishnakumar also attended the function.

Apart from the scientific name and description, the booklet has details such as common name, local name, family, flowering season, fruiting season and existing countries of each tree. The sprawling park spread over 11.5 acres has more than 400 trees. Varieties from 14 countries, including the USA, China, Australia, West Indies, Sri Lanka and many among others, have been planted at the park.