In hot weather, this giant conifer cools itself by evaporating pineapple-scented volatile oils from its glossy sprays of foliage. It dislikes drought and is unlikely to reach its full lifespan in Hastings: this one has a dead top, after retrenching to conserve resources in recent summers.
Red Western Cedar
Red Western Cedar – you could live a thousand years!
I wonder how time feels
when it stretches that wide.
You rose and rose,
then bowed your head—
under a too-wet sky.
Your massive bark is furred,
red and gentle.
I press softly
to hypnotise hidden insects
humming through my palms.
Will my touch leave a trace
in your patient, growing rings?
We scramble up the steep bank behind you—
laughing, slipping—
hands full of dirt, dirt, dirt.