Future food crop

Fruit, nut and native trees will be growing in Oamaru parks and reserves under a programme started on Arbor Day on Thursday with (from left) Sophia Leon de la Barra, Bee Bogan, Nigel Beck and others planting at Casa Nova Park.

The Oamaru Food Forest Project is an initiative by Transition Town Oamaru and the Waitaki Community Gardens, the aim being to provide food crops mixed with native trees on 24 parks and reserves in Oamaru.

A start was made on Thursday with 10 trees planted at Casa Nova Park and 12 at Holmes Hill Park. They included apple, fig, apricot, peach cot, walnut, pear, feijoa, plumcot and nectarines among the natives.

The project has been boosted by a grant from the North Otago Masonic Lodges Trust which will pay for another 100 trees.