Friday, May 2, 2025
On Wednesday, April 30th, three cherry tree seedlings were planted at Nonno Forest in Hokuryu Town with the cooperation of Kazuo Shibasaki, a forestry leader belonging to the Sorachi District Forestry Leaders Liaison Council, Susumu Yotsuji, a Hokuryu town resident, Junichi Iguchi, head of the Industry Division at Hokuryu Town Hall, and Yoshihiro Ichiba, section chief. The seedlings were planted in three places along the walking path of Nonno Forest.
Cherry tree planting (Nonno Forest)
Seeds sowing by third graders at Shinryu Elementary School
The cherry tree saplings are young trees that were planted from cherry tree seeds by third graders at Shinryu Elementary School and have grown four years since then.
Students at Shinryu Elementary School sow cherry blossom seeds when they are in the third grade, and when they graduate three years later, they plant the grown cherry trees in Konpira Park as a graduation memento. This is an annual commemorative event.
A talk by instructor Kazuo Shibasaki
"I've been a forestry instructor for about 10 years.
Around the end of June, a month and a half after the cherry blossoms have finished blooming, the trees start to bear fruit. At first they turn yellow, then red, and finally ripen to a purple-black color. The fruit is harvested when it turns black. The fruit is washed and peeled to collect the seeds. The third graders at Shinryu Elementary School sow the seeds in this hands-on class.
The sown cherry tree seedlings will grow to 30-40cm in the autumn of the following year. After a year, by the autumn of the fifth grade, they will have grown to about 1m in height. They are then planted in the autumn of the sixth grade in late October to commemorate the graduation from elementary school.
The three seedlings that will be planted in Nonno Forest this time are just a part of that collection."
Put up the supports and add protective materials
"We protect the saplings by setting up supports and tying them to the supports with hemp rope, then attaching protective material to them. In addition, in winter, wild mice are susceptible to eating the new shoots, and if they eat the bark, the trees will wither. We attach anti-pest material tubes to the saplings to protect them and take defensive measures," explained Shibasaki, a forestry instructor.
Mayor Yasuhiro Sasaki paid a visit of encouragement
Mayor Sasaki Yasuhiro took time out of his busy schedule to visit and offer his encouragement.
Cherry blossoms that bloom when you're 20 years old
After the cherry blossoms bloom in Konpira Park, the fruit ripens and the third graders sow the seeds. Three years later, when the sixth graders graduate, the young trees that grow are planted as a graduation gift. Then, ten years later, when the students turn 20, beautiful cherry blossoms bloom...
The cherry blossom is Japan's national flower, beloved by Japanese people and captivated by its beauty.
The children of Shinryu Elementary School are growing up with the cherry blossoms that represent Japanese culture and soul.
I sincerely hope that when I turn 20, I will be able to see beautiful cherry blossoms in my hometown of Hokuryu Town.
The cycle of all life changes with the changing of the seasons...
The graceful cherry blossom symbolizes the aesthetics of transience, encounters and partings, and the ever-changing nature of "impermanence," and is filled with boundless love, gratitude, and prayer.
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Thursday, October 31, 2024…
Friday, August 19, 2022 An article titled "We planted cherry blossom seeds!" was posted on the website of the Hokkaido Sorachi Regional Revitalization Council "Sorachi De View"...
◇ Photography, editing and website management: Noboru Terauchi Writer: Ikuko Terauchi
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