Hundreds of bulbs, entire rose bushes stolen from Christchurch Mona Vale park

By RNZ

Hundreds of plants are being pinched from a Christchurch park, with brazen thieves using scooters and wheelie bins to get away with the prized flora.

Some of the plant thefts from the Mona Vale Garden Park over the past six months have been caught on camera, as some flowers and bushes literally disappear overnight.

The historic homestead is surrounded by more than five hectares of manicured lawns, mature trees and flower gardens, kept by two full-time staff and an army of volunteers.

Mona Vale sub-committee member and volunteer Susan Lawrence told RNZ’s Checkpoint there had been sporadic thefts over many years, but it had ramped up in the past six months.

“There’s been some really brazen nocturnal activity and we’ve been wondering how to address the problem, so we’ll start by just putting it out there in the public domain.”

One of the photos, taken at about 4am, showed a woman on a scooter with a wheelie bin in front of her. Lawrence said it was clear what the woman was up to.

“That’s why we say its brazen and blatant and unacceptable, and that particular footage really highlighted the seriousness of the problem.”

After planting 900 spring tulip bulbs, half were taken just as the blooms were getting ready for their best display, while whole rose bushes and ferns from the fernery have disappeared.

Some of the plant thefts from the Mona Vale Garden Park over the past six months have been caught on camera. Photo / Simon Baker

Lawrence said the garden was a big part of locals’ lives, with community fundraising helping to save Mona Vale from developers in the 1960s.

“It’s a very much loved place and it’s very distressing for all of us.”

She said they did not know for sure where the stolen plants were being taken.

“But it’s clandestine and it’s criminal and I guess people wanting to make money out of this sort of activity, so who knows?

“If anybody knows anything, please come forward.”