Behind the green heart

There is one constant in the city of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, anything you go to visit will be surrounded by large trees. For example, the large number of sculptures in the street (which we discussed in the section ‘Santa Cruz and its sculptures’) cannot be understood without the leafiness that surrounds them. The most visible examples are the large Indian laurels of the Rambla, brought from Cuba at the end of the 19th century, or the Avenida de Anaga. Also the flamboyant trees of San José street or the bathing area of Valleseco. Because Santa Cruz would not be the same without the shade of its trees and the coolness found in its parks.

We have named the trees that are impossible not to notice. But within the generality there are particularities, curious stories that can be read in this essential guide by the hand of which we can tour the city in search of the green heart of Santa Cruz. The manual shows 77 unique trees. Among the tallest are an Indian laurel tree in the Plaza del Príncipe and a eucalyptus tree in La Granja park, both of which are around 20 meters tall. On Pilar Street there is a striking and unique baobab tree and right next to it a Buddhist pine tree. Santa Cruz has several examples of palo borracho, such as the one on the corner of Calle del Castillo and Robayna, a tree on which it is better not to lean…

And then there is the García Sanabria Park, an authentic botanical garden in itself. The delicate and exotic Madagascar almond tree, several types of ficus, jacarandas, ceibas… The park is the main lung of the city, only there you can spend hours, so it is good to know that it has very nice places where to regain strength: the Strasse or the Park Terrace are inside. And we also have two historic ones such as the Numancia kiosk or the López Echeto ice cream and pastry shop, just across the street, or the Squina, on the corner with Pilar street, in front of the flower clock.

Not far away, in the Plaza de San Francisco, one should observe the specimens of the Australian Moreton Bay fig tree, with its spectacular aerial roots, as if it were a work of the Renaissance.

The other two large parks in the city are La Granja, where among many other species we have the Australian eucalyptus or gum arabic and nearby, the Viera y Clavijo, which highlights its red eucalyptus and date palms.

 

The dragon tree, a symbol

The guide does not forget the great Macaronesian species, the dragon tree, of which we have examples in the Plaza del Chicharro or next to the Church of the Conception, where there is also the polynesian casuarina … and two steps away, in Santo Domingo street, we find a plum tree of the Cafres, which only by its name deserves to be seen. This route from tree to tree is a different way to get to know the city and its 1,500 square meters of green areas, placed so that we can always walk under its shade and under the protective shield that gives the vegetation from the usual noise of the city.