Unknown person tears down protective fence and steals a lime tree

A lime tree that was recently planted on the Rägetenweg, above the town of Zug, has disappeared without a trace. The farmer is at a loss to understand what has happened, and the Kloster Maria Opferung association, from whose property the tree was stolen, has filed a complaint against unknown persons.

Farmer Christian Horat was amazed when he drove his car onto his leased land at 9 o'clock in the morning: Where a 1-metre-high lime tree was supposed to stand, there was nothing left. The young lime tree, which was only planted in spring, had disappeared without a trace.

The perfidy: The protective fence made of wire was also torn out – and was lying in the grass with its iron and wood supports. This had all taken place on the Rägetenweg, which connects the chapel of St. Verena with the Waldheimstrasse, at the foot of the Zugerberg:

Why someone stole the tree is not known. In any case, Christian Horat has no understanding for the unknown thieves:

"I can't imagine who does something like that. I just have trouble with it."

A large tree trunk nearby indicates that a lime tree had already shaped the landscape at the same place for decades: "Because the previous lime tree had been severely damaged by a lightning strike, the tree had to be felled last winter, to be on the safe side," says Horat.

The bench belonging to the city of Zug was also removed. There had been some negative feedback from the population when the previous lime tree was felled,– many people missed the tree – and the Rägetenweg is a popular destination for walkers.

Farmer Christian Horat shows where the lime tree was uprooted.           Photo: Matthias Jurt, Zug

It was also clear to the Kloster Maria Opferung association, which owns the property, that a new lime tree was to be planted there again. Accordingly, the association planted a new lime tree in the same place in the spring – but the joy of the freshly planted tree only lasted until Thursday last week.

Pia Iten is the administrator of the Kloster Maria Opferung association, from whose property the lime tree has disappeared. She says: "We are very surprised that the tree is gone. This is a great pity, because the lime tree was appreciated by the population." The police are now also involved. she says:

"Of course, we now had to file a complaint against unknown persons."

In any case, the Kloster Maria Opferung association is not thinking of giving up – and there will again be a lime tree on the said site in the future: "We confirm that we will plant a new linden tree again in autumn," says Pia Iten. And this is also clear for Horat:

"The way it looks now, something is simply missing."