Stanley Park trees a link to our past
Author’s wanderings reveal hidden details of city through book on Stanley Park’s flora
Legacy of Trees: Purposeful Wandering in Vancouver’s Stanley Park
By Nina Shoroplova Heritage House Publishing $29.95 | 288 pp
If the trees in Stanley Park could talk, they’d undoubtedly share some interesting stories — and maybe even divulge a few secrets — about the ever-changing city that surrounds them.
The unique premise of discovering a different side of Vancouver, through the vast flora of the remarkable urban forest, is the basis of a new book titled Legacy of Trees: Purposeful Wandering in Vancouver’s Stanley Park, by Nina Shoroplova.
“The trees in Stanley Park link us to our past — the past of Vancouver — while also tying us to our present,” Shoroplova says.
The 1,001-acre park, which is home to a variety of tree types ranging from centuries-old Douglas firs to Japanese cherry trees, has long been considered a desirable destination for those seeking a temporary escape from busy city life.
“In its early days, when Vancouverites were working six-day weeks, Stanley Park was the place to go to hear a Sunday concert; to celebrate something like the visit of a dignitary and the end of a world war, ... and to express our values,” she says.
At the centre of that near-universal allure, she says, are the trees.
According to Shoroplova, many of the plants in Stanley Park share a purposeful perspective of the city’s history. One that, if you didn’t know just what you were looking at, could easily be missed.
“What may also be surprising is the suitability of the particular tree to its environment,” she says, pointing to the English oaks planted to celebrate the coronation of English kings and queens; a flowering cherry tree at the Japanese Canadian War Memorial; three young dove trees (also known as “ghost trees,” she says) planted at the memorial for Air India Flight 182; and the Western Red Cedar “left to grow tall” near artist Bill Reid’s bronze sculpture of a Killer Whale near the Vancouver Aquarium.
It was the discovery of these hidden details of Stanley Park’s trees that, ultimately, drew Shoroplova to centre her book solely around its greenery versus the countless other possible topics related to the world-famous park.
But the decision to do so presented one potential hurdle for the local historian, photographer and researcher: She didn’t know all that much about trees.
“Although I have always been able to appreciate trees in many ways — for their uniqueness, their constancy, their ability to continually renew themselves and their adaptability — my actual knowledge about trees was not where I needed it to be to write this book,” she admits of the chosen topic. “I really had to buckle down and start learning.”
Calling the book “botanical, legendary and historical,” Shoroplova says the project was initially planned to be “something short.”
“But the project grew and grew as I delved deeper into my subject — the stories of the trees of Stanley Park,” Shoroplova admits. “The continuity of life as reflected in the life cycle of trees appealed to me.”
Her research expeditions while writing the book consisted of frequent bouts of “purposeful wandering” throughout the park, where she would spend hours discovering new subjects of study.
“I would set off with hiking boots, poles, camera and a short list of trees growing in a particular location of the park. And when I found them and studied them a bit more, I would realize that another tree that interested me grew just over that hill,” Shoroplova says. “So, I would go over there. And when I had taken photographs of that tree and made some notes for writing out later, I would realize that a group of another tree species grew down a nearby path.”
In this manner, she traversed her way through the twisting trails of Stanley Park, cataloguing and photographing its many, well-rooted inhabitants. “Every time I visit some of my favourite trees, I notice something I hadn’t noticed before,” she says fondly.
And it’s this sense of discovery that she hopes is properly imparted to readers who happen to pick up her new book, whether they be avid tree enthusiasts or not.
“I am hopeful that those readers who never thought they would be able to tell the difference between one tree and the next will be surprised to start identifying some trees,” Shoroplova says. “For those readers who already know certain areas and aspects of the park, I hope they will be delighted to discover new areas and aspects.”
Shoroplova says that, unlike some other nature-observing pursuits, trees provide people with the perfect subjects for careful study.
“The great thing about identifying trees — rather than birds or insects — is that trees stay in the same place,” she says. “And even though a tree might look different from one season to the next, it will always be rooted in the same place.”
As the quarantines and physical-distancing protocols of the past few months have, again, rendered Stanley Park a place of outdoor escape for locals, Shoroplova hopes those visitors will discover a little something extra to appreciate about this special urban forest thanks to the pages of her new book.
“Having to be more isolated during COVID -19 has made some people more appreciative of their physical environment, especially the trees, shrubs and plants,” she says. “They are seeing their neighbourhoods with new eyes. And I hope Legacy of Trees will do the same for people visiting Stanley Park.”