Treemendous makeover for schools.

Three schools in the North Island and one in the South have been selected to receive a Treemendous School Makeover - a joint initiative by the Mazda Foundation and Project Crimson Trust.

Spotswood Primary School (New Plymouth), Westshore School (Napier), Epuni Primary School (Lower Hutt) and Rapaura School (Blenheim) were chosen to have their grounds enhanced with native tree gardens.

“It is excellent to see schools placing an emphasis on environmental education,” says Andrew Clearwater, Chairman for the Mazda Foundation.  “Through the Treemendous programme we have created 11 outdoor classrooms and we’re looking forward to visiting these latest four schools in 2011 to transform their grounds.”

The four school communities along with the Treemendous Team will complete the makeovers in the New Year.

Spotswood Primary School in New Plymouth will complete work on an outdoor classroom, which they began developing in 2004, as well as upgrading a shaded grassy area off the school’s field with pathways and picnic tables for the children.

Westshore School, a 114-pupil school in Napier, plans to enhance the area around the school library and reading room with decking and native plants.

Lower Hutt’s Epuni Primary School will have the area connecting the school to Epuni Kindergarten transformed with native plants and a walkway designed in the shape of a Koru.

Rapaura School, a school of 112 students in Blenheim, will make over a wasteland area into an outdoor classroom that will attract local native birds and through the planting of flax contribute to a children’s garden art programme.

Project Crimson is a charitable conservation Trust that aims to protect New Zealand’s native Christmas trees - pohutukawa and rata. Since the Trust was formed in 1990, volunteers have successfully established hundreds of thousands of pohutukawa and rata trees around NZ.