Everyone who knew Louise knew what a kind and warm person she was to everyone that she met. She made us all feel special with just a quick flash of her smile.

Kensington Gardens is a much-loved London park and contains many memorials - Louise's tree will be in great company. Over there you can see the children's playground, with its pirate ship and Indian wigwams, which was built to honour Princess Diana who lived in Kensington Palace. And on the far side of Kensington Gardens is the Albert Memorial, built by Queen Victoria to commemorate the good works of her beloved husband Prince Albert.

First let me tell you a little about the Royal Parks' Tree Planting scheme. It is part of a charity appeal that was set up by the Prince Charles in 1987 to replace the many trees lost in the great storm of that year. Louise's tree was planted on our behalf early yesterday morning by the Park Manager himself and we will receive a certificate from him shortly to say that it officially belongs to Louise.

This tree we've planted is called a mountain ash or a rowan tree. Or for those of you who are keen gardeners, a sorbus of the variety Jacob's Coat. At the moment it is barely more than a twig but just here you can see examples of a more mature versions. Two more similar trees are due to be planted behind Louise's tree shortly. When fully grown the mountain ash is a graceful open tree that can be up to 20 metres high. Its leaves are shaped like feathers and creamy-white clusters of sweet smelling flowers come out in May. But it is at its absolute best in the autumn when the leaves turn a gorgeous red colour and the tree produces big clusters of red berries that the birds love to eat.

As I am sure Louise would expect of me, I have been doing a little research into the significance of the mountain ash and although the tree was simply selected by the park to meet their current planting needs, there are actually a lot of similarities between the character of this tree and our dear Louise.

Firstly, it is a very adventurous tree. It is called a mountain ash because it can grow much higher up the mountainside than most other trees. Adventurous doesn't quite describe a lady who spent her honeymoon with Robert in the middle of the Ecuadorian rainforest, 15 days walk from the nearest civilization, drinking homemade beer with the local tribe.

I have already mentioned the beauty this tree will bring to its surroundings but the park manager also chose it because it is kind to other plants in the park. It has very open branches that allow the sunlight through to reach the ground so the grass can still grow under its protection. Openness and kindness were instinctive qualities with Louise and she was always quick to protect anyone she felt was vulnerable.

The wood from a mountain ash tree is strong, flexible and very hard working and is used for walking sticks and for carving. And apparently its red berries can be made into a variety of alcoholic drinks. Now judging by the fun that Louise had at when we all went out together, I don't think she would object to that..

In olden times, the rowan tree was thought to have power against bad spirits and people planted it outside their houses and hung the leaves over their front door for good luck. That's something we will always remember Louise for - her caring and her infectious laugh were guaranteed to banish any bad feelings far away in a second.

Louise's final connection to her tree is quite remarkable. As well as being called the Mountain Ash and the Rowan, this tree has an old Gaelic name used in ancient time in Ireland and Scotland. Its Gaelic name is Luis, spelt L-U-I-S.

So this, in every way, is Louise's tree. We have planted it here in memory of a beautiful, intelligent, strong, adventurous, fun and caring friend whom we all loved dearly and will miss always. May it grow and flourish and bring beauty to the park for many years, just as the memory of Louise will live and grow in our hearts and enrich our lives forever more.

Shelaine