Once the soil has been turned, the photographs taken, the hands shaken and the media circus moved on, all those trees planted by royals and other dignitaries are almost forgotten. But here is proof that many of those saplings have flourished spectacularly long after the polished spades have been packed away and the royal connection but a memory.
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As the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge prepare to plant an English oak tree at the National Arboretum Canberra on Thursday morning, past plantings by William's mother and grandmother have been quietly thriving. Princess Diana, during a royal visit in 1985, planted a golden ash in the grounds of Government House.
It is now a vibrant addition to the gardens and may have even attracted the eye of the Duchess of Cambridge and Prince George when they strolled in the grounds earlier this week.
The Queen has had a hand in many of tree plantings. As a young queen in 1954 she planted a gum tree at the Australian War Memorial. The tree is no longer there, but a plaque commemorating the event remains.
In that year she also planted a silvertop gum in the grounds of Government House in Canberra and in other tours this was followed by a black sally gum in 2006 and a swamp white oak in 2011.
While she wielded the spade, her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, was usually watching on.
Other trees planted around the national capital have also become significant landmarks.
In 1927 Prince Albert, the Duke of York (the Queen's father, who who later became George VI), planted an oak tree in Canberra in the York Park oak plantation, on the corner of Kings Avenue and State Circle. .
But the oak tree to be planted by the young royals at the National Arboretum on Thursday will do more than provide shade near the pod playground. It will have very special significance for another young couple.
Alicia Fehily and Alan Martin from Yarralumla are to be married at the arboretum on Thursday afternoon, long after the royal cavalcade has moved on. And after the nuptials, they will make sure they have at least one photograph taken next to newly planted oak tree.
They plan to revisit the site every wedding anniversary to take another photograph of themselves next to the tree.
''It will grow as we do,'' Ms Fehily said.
