‘Chipping Weekend’ offers ecological Christmas Tree disposal
Mulchfest gathers volunteers, families and park employees
Mark Focht (far right) poses for a photo with Parks staff and volunteers. Photo by Gabriele Holtermann
By Gabriele Holtermann
January 16, 2025
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PROSPECT PARK — New Yorkers wrapped up the post-holiday season by saying “fir-well” to their yule trees at the NYC Parks Department’s annual Mulchfest, which started on Dec. 26 and concluded with “Chipping Weekend” on Saturday, Jan. 11 and Sunday, Jan. 12.
Instead of dumping the trees in landfills where they break down into the harmful greenhouse gas methane, New Yorkers could drop off their live Christmas trees at one of the 75 locations — including 35 chipping sites — across the five boroughs. The holiday tradition is an eco-friendly way to dispose of the evergreens, which are chipped and turned into nutrient-rich mulch. The mulch is used in tree beds and community gardens citywide, and it helps deter weeds, keeps roots warm, retains moisture and prevents compaction.
Prospect Park was host to one of the ten chipping sites in Brooklyn, and hundreds of live Christmas trees were already piled up along West Drive at Third Street and Prospect Park West in Park Slope on Saturday morning. A steady flow of Parks Department trucks delivered more trees they collected from drop-off sites throughout the day while neighbors dropped off their holiday trees at the site, watching the breakdown of their trees in action.
Several volunteers kept the supply of evergreens flowing as Parks employees fed the trees into a wood chipper, which discharged the wood chips into a truck.
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