August 2025:

A wonderful update and message from Dr. Yuri Naumtsev at the Botanical Garden of Tver State University:

"On August 6, 2014, at the first "Open Heart Day" in our Garden, a symbolic memorial planting of the first tree grown from seeds obtained from Hiroshima took place. A small Ginkgo biloba was planted in the Garden on this day by a Japanese girl, Hitomi. It was a truly special Day. Sad and bright because we remembered all those who died in that terrible tragedy and remembered the story of little Sadako, whose death with a paper crane in her hands shocked the whole world. It is even more symbolic that another Japanese girl, Hitomi, who came to Tver with her mother and father and whose life is just beginning, planted a small tree from Hiroshima with her own hands.

Open Heart Day on August 6, 2025, the year of the 80th anniversary of the Hiroshima tragedy, was again special, as are all such meetings. On this day, we again remembered the terrible events in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, we remembered and talked about the unfortunate, but amazingly courageous Japanese girl Sadako Sasaki, who died from the consequences of a nuclear explosion in Hiroshima, but who believed in the saving legend of a thousand paper cranes and thanks to whom this legend became known to the whole world! As every year, we made paper cranes on this day. We placed white chrysanthemums under the memorial Ginkgo trees from Hiroshima. There was a quiet tea ceremony. We planted a small Fuji Cherry on this day. The cherry tree was planted again, like our first Ginkgo from Hiroshima, by a little girl, again in memory of Sadako. We placed a symbolic Earth globe decorated with Ginkgo leaves in the "Open Heart Garden" next to the memorial Ginkgo trees from Hiroshima. This is our message and our common dream for green trees to grow on all continents, and not nuclear missiles!

We remember the words of Japanese children, which are written at the foot of the Memorial Monument in the Peace Park in Hiroshima - "This is our cry. This is our prayer. Peace in the whole world!"

Our dear friends, we are with you on this day and always! Unique trees from Hiroshima continue to live in our Garden and bring the idea of peace to all people who come to it."