It has been there for a long time, lying just like a dead body with open arms, crucified on the ground, that large pine tree that fell into a private villa. It stands out in the eyes of those who enter Trani from the Trani center junction, coming from the north, and even now, framed by a splendid bougainvillea, with that palm stub like a funeral candle, it instills a sense of profound sadness. It seems to represent, perfectly, what is happening in Trani: a carnage of public green spaces, of course, with all the good reasons for it, the age, the roots breaking through the pavements, the danger of falling branches or entire trees. The problem is that there is not a shadow of a “reshuffle” vision, a plan that provides for the necessary action for a city, for a community, for a population such as public green spaces. In recent years there have been various inaugurations of gardens, probably not with the species most suited to certain places, others completely neglected, perhaps evidently not cared for in the right way. But in recent times many associations have been moving to urge those in charge, and this is not the place to make proposals or analyze what has or has not been done. The farmers teach that when there is a problem in the end it matters little to find fault, because the result doesn’t change anyway, and it’s what catches your eye that hurts: Trani is changing shape more and more every day, it’s losing elegance , in that refinement that trees and plants give, replaced by wild shrubs, small blind flowerbeds, even a forest of ailanthus, an invasive and harmful species. Those entrances, like the one on via Bisceglie, which framed the welcome, are increasingly bare and there is no trace of repopulation. There are cities like Lisbon where next to centuries-old trees, with intelligent foresight, young plants already appear destined to take their place, because it is known that many species, just like pine trees, are destined to die. In other states, for every fallen tree there is a legal obligation to plant one or more replacements. We’re talking about common sense here. And that corpse with open arms that presents itself to those who are returning home from work, or arriving in Trani for the first time is truly sad, especially since we know that it can be an effective symbol that closely resembles something that really dies every more day in our city.
