Adopt a duck

In the post today, Kew Gardens offer me the opportunity to dedicate a tree or area of woodland to 'celebrate the life of someone special'. The cheapest dedication is £250 for an area of bulb planting. Woodland areas are available at £1,000. Or a 'range of heritage trees' which 'start at' £5,000 each. Nothing for my budget, which would be to sponsor a small patch of weed.

Once you've paid up, they send you... a certificate. No commemmorative sign nailed to a tree in your individual woodland area (not that I'm lobbying for one!). Not even a nice letter from the tree at Christmas to let you know how it’s been getting on.

Next up, I predict an adopt-a-duck scheme. Or one of these splendid Kew chickens that live near the Marianne North Gallery.

Just a thought: wouldn’t a straightforward request for a donation to help Kew with its valuable work be less manipulative, more effective?