San Diego Botanic Garden joins in unity with friends and colleagues around the globe to dedicate a newly planted ginkgo tree descended from a mother tree that survived the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan more than 70 years ago.
The ceremonial event will take place on August 5 at 4:15 p.m., corresponding to the exact time in Pacific Standard Time that the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The commemoration will include several guest speakers as well as a leaf rubbing and community wish writing activities for attendees to participate in.
This significant tree is the result of a partnership with Green Legacy Hiroshima Initiative, a global campaign aiming to disseminate the universal messages of caution and hope that the unique survivor trees of Hiroshima represent. These trees call to mind the dangers of arms of mass destruction and nuclear weapons in particular, as well as the sacred character of humankind and the resilience of nature.
Currently, seeds and saplings from the A-bombed trees are growing in more than 40 countries in a sustained, long-term (1,000-year) campaign, joining other efforts to establish a nuclear-free and more ecological planet.
San Diego Botanic Garden received its ginkgo as a seedling from Shukkeien garden in Japan in 2020 and was recently planted on-site in June of 2023.