UGLY TREES

ONCE again, with the help of local gardeners, Toowoomba donned its finery for the Carnival of Flowers and has looked exceptionally beautiful.

Sincere thanks must go to home owners who put so much effort and money into their gardens. Thanks also to all the council gardeners. The parks and gardens around the city have been spectacular.

The same cannot be said for some of the trees lining the streets. Unfortunately, these are mostly along the main entrances to the city.

The pruned camphor laurels, jacarandas and golden rain are just grotesque.

On foggy nights, in the glow of the street lights, they produce an eerie landscape of misshapen, giant space creatures or a spooky backdrop of monsters in a horror movie. In daytime they are just depressingly ugly.

I know the branches have to be kept clear of overhead wires. It is a shame that the pruning is done in such a way, that the tree is stripped of its dignity and form and only a skeleton of its former beauty is left.

I find it strange that listed noxious plants such as camphor laurel and golden rain have been used. They grow so quickly. Then the seeds blow for kilometres and their root systems damage footpaths and streets and invade yards adjacent to the trees.

I hope that the flowering pear trees that now grace some of the streets, are pruned in a sympathetic manner and shaped in a more appealing way before they grow too close to the overhead lines.

MARY REILLY, Toowoomba