This street tree on Central Avenue at Troutman Street didn’t survive the dry summer. Dead trees will be replaced and new trees planted in Bushwick over the next several weeks.
Photo by Jeremy Sapienza for BushwickBK

Bushwick is slated to get hundreds more street trees in an ongoing effort by the Parks Dept. and allied organizations to green the neighborhood. Some trees planted earlier in the year will also need to be replaced after a dryer than normal summer killed several.

This past May, Bushwick saw the last of one thousand street trees planted on the barest blocks. The new planting will target an even larger area roughly between Flushing, Wilson, and Cypress Avenues, and Grove Street, between now and January 1.

Mike Mitchell of MillionTrees NYC, a mayoral initiative tasked with planting one million trees in New York City by 2017, pointed out that some trees that look dead aren’t necessarily.

“A lot of the species that we plant are specifically bred to overcome even the worst droughts,” Mitchell said. “This means that oftentimes the trees just become dormant when they can’t get enough nutrients in the summer, but will explode with growth the next spring.”

Some property owners have already removed some dead-looking trees, which Mitchell warns against. Residents who want a dead tree removed should call the Parks Dept. for free removal. This allows Parks to check the tree to see if it really is dead, and determine if it needs to be replaced.

Another reason not to remove trees, said Mitchell, is that “it is highly likely that someone else pulling out the tree voids the warranty, meaning Parks has to pay an additional $1,900 for each tree removed by the homeowner.”

The $1,900 figure includes the entire procedure — purchasing the tree, preparing the sidewalk, hauling, etc., and two years of care from the contractor. It’s important to note that because of the backing of private non-profit New York Restoration Project and other private donors, the MillionTrees project is only partly taxpayer financed.

New tree pits will be indicated by a “T” or a square spraypainted on the sidewalk. Trees to be replaced will have the “T” on the curb. “We’re working on getting fancy stencils, but we don’t have them quite yet,” Mitchell said.

Public health authorities see the planting as urgent because of a correlation between less trees and higher asthma rates.

MillionTrees wants more volunteers to help care for the trees, which need extra attention in the first few months after planting. Most importantly, they need about 20 gallons of water per week. MillionTrees will give a workshop for a group of ten or more residents who request one, and those who sign up will be given free training and tools.

To officially “adopt” a tree or request a workshop, register with the MTNYC “Stewardship Corps,” but anyone can take it upon themselves to care for a neglected tree, even if it’s just removing trash from the pit or giving it water in a dry spell.