A project established for the public to report issues with trees in their local council has taken a curious turn after every tree in Melbourne was given its own email address. The Urban Forest Strategy in Melbourne began in 2013, with the intention of restoring the city’s connection with its natural side.

    Thousands of trees were given ID numbers and email addresses so locals could report any problems, but soon love letters to the trees began to pour in from around the world. From Melbournians thanking the trees for providing air, to a child asking what it feels like when leaves fall off, the trees have received over 3,000 emails. Coming from as far as Russia, Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom, Hungary, Moldova, Singapore, Brazil, Denmark and Hong Kong, the letters often ask questions of the trees.

    “How old are you?” is one commonly asked, while other writers request photos of the trees they are conversing with. The most emailed tree is a golden elm on the busy Punt Road, which was described by one person as The Magic Faraway Tree from Enid Blyton’s childhood classic.

    “You are my favorite tree in all of Melbourne! Even if you do need a little bit of help under that great leafy canopy,” wrote one nature enthusiast.

    “You are my favorite tree, even though you make me stoop over during my morning run when you grow too big,” emailed another to the golden elm.

    Sometimes if people are lucky, the trees respond to questions asked in emails. “So lovely to be appreciated. I am lucky to be well looked after,” the golden elm wrote in response to one letter.

    Chair of the City of Melbourne’s Environment Portfolio Cr. Arron Wood said the initiative was launched in an effort to save hundreds of trees lost to droughts. “Melbourne has long been regarded as Australia’s ‘garden city,’ but 13 years of drought in tandem with severe water restrictions left the city’s urban forest in a state of unprecedented decline,” he said. “By 2009, 40 percent of our significant trees were declining or dying.”

墨尔本启动了一个项目让公众反映其所在市政区的树木问题。自从城中所有树木都有了专属邮箱地址后，事情就发生了奇妙的转变。2013年，墨尔本发起了“城市森林战略”，旨在重建城市和自然的联系。

几千棵树均有自己的标识和电子邮箱地址，方便当地人反映问题。然而不久之后，写给树的情书铺天盖地从世界各地涌来。从墨尔本人感谢树木提供清新空气，到儿童问树叶飘落时树是什么感觉，这些树收到了3000多封邮件。它们来自遥远的俄罗斯、德国、美国、英国、匈牙利、摩尔多瓦、新加坡、巴西、丹麦和香港等

地，邮件里经常出现对树的问寻。

最常见的问题是：“今年多大啦？”一些人会向自己正在交流的树索要树照。位于繁忙的普特路的金叶榆收到的邮件最

多，有人将它描述为安迪?布莱顿儿童经典作品中的“远方的魔法树”。

一位自然爱好者写道：“你的树冠太浓密了，确实需要一点支撑，不过你还是墨尔本城中我最爱的树！”

还有一封给金叶榆的信写道：“每天晨跑时，我不得不从你庞大的身躯下弯腰而过，尽管如此，你仍是我最爱的树。”

如果你足够幸运，这些树还会给你回信。金叶榆就回信说：“被欣赏的感觉妙不可言。我很幸运得到了很好的照顾。”

墨尔本环境档案主席亚纶·伍德议员表示，此计划旨在拯救成百棵因干旱而消失的树木。“墨尔本一直被视为澳大利亚的‘花园城市’，但是长达13年的干旱加上水资源严重匮乏导致墨尔本城市森林处于空前的下滑状态。截止到2009年，40%的大树已衰退或正死去。”

Words to Learn 相关词汇

【树冠】shùguān canopy the cover formed by the leafy upper branches of the trees in a forest

【和…一起】hé ... yīqǐ in tandem with together or at the same time