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The Week in Germany: Culture

April 27, 2007

A Chestnut Gets Own Letterbox - and Even Writes Back

A time-honored chestnut tree in the Düsseldorf district of Himmelgeist is about to become a busy pen pal.

On the occasion of "Tree Day" in Germany on April 25 the chestnut will get its own postal address. It is the second tree in Germany which people can write to - but the first one that will "write" back.

Members of the local community association and the initiative "Tree ghosts of Himmelgeist" have planned on answering all the letters in lieu of the old tree.

"We want to draw people's attention to environmental protection," said initiative participant Andreas Vogt. "Our chestnut tree represents all other trees."

Normally, postal addresses are reserved for "people and legal bodies," but in the case of the old chestnut, Deutsche Post, the German postal service, has made an exception.

"If it is about environmental protection, we are happy to help," said Achim Gahr, Deutsche Post's spokesman in Düsseldorf.

Alongside the Düsseldorf chestnut tree only the "Groom's Oak" in Eutin in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein has its own address. It has been receiving letters for years now - but has never written back.

The 200-year-old chestnut tree stands alone in a field alongside the Rhine River, where it has survived two world wars. Generations of people met in its shade, held picnics or even a secret rendezvous. In 1998 the tree was declared a natural monument.

However, when in early 2006 an expert noticed fungal decay and the danger that the tree, with its circumference of almost four meters (13 feet), could topple over, there were plans afoot to cut it down.

But a citizen's initiative collected signatures and prevented the old chestnut from being chopped into kindling. A new expert opinion was obtained which certified that the tree was in the best of health.

"At that time it became obvious that many people have a lot of emotional memories associated with that tree," said Vogt. (dpa)

From April 25 onwards, people who want to contact the chestnut can send their letters to: Himmelgeister Kastanie, Kölner Weg, 40589 Düsseldorf-Himmelgeist.

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