Street Tree Planting

Learn more about NYC Parks street tree planting program.

Street Tree Planting Decal

The NYC Parks street tree planting program is part of a citywide initiative to green the streets of New York City. Street trees make the city more livable, improve the environment, enhance public health and are a key element of the City’s PlaNYC initiative to make the city more sustainable as our population grows. Through MillionTreesNYC, NYC Parks will plant new trees in all appropriate spaces on public sidewalks.

In the winter of 2014, NYC Parks initiated a pilot program to notify residents of new tree planting locations. If you saw a sticker or small flag on the sidewalk in front of your home,  this location has been chosen as a planting site and a young tree is on the way. Please see the various details of NYC Parks' street tree planting program below including frequently asked questions. If you have any additional questions or comments, please contact us through the City's 311 hotline by phone or via the 311 website.

View locations for SPRING 2016 street tree planting

NYC Parks foresters have distributed the following notifications to provide awareness of where planting is taking place:

  • I'M NEW Decal – This sticker shows where a new tree is going to be planted in the sidewalk. The decal will be removed when the sidewalk is excavated for planting.
  • I'M NEW Flag – This flag indicates a new tree planting in a lawn strip or an existing tree bed. If there is a stump located in the tree bed, it will be removed during the planting process.

 


Get Involved in Street Tree Care

Volunteer tree stewards in the Bronx

MillionTreesNYC offers FREE tree care workshops where you will learn how to identify NYC street trees, the benefits they provide to our city, and the basics to tree care as well as advanced Care Captain workshops which provide residents with the skills to teach their own workshops. Community groups and schools dedicated to tree care are eligible for a MillionTreesNYC TreeLC Mini-Grant, which provides up to $1000 to care for young street trees.

  • Weed – Remove weeds from the tree bed. Weeds compete with the tree for water and other nutrients.
  • Cultivate – Loosen the top two to three inches of soil to help water and air reach the tree roots.
  • Water – In the hot months between May and October a young tree needs 15 to 20 gallons of water a week.
  • Mulch - Add a layer of mulch (wood chips) or compost to help reduce weeds, retain moisture and add nutrients to the soil.

MillionTreesNYC will be commending outstanding street tree care efforts with our new I'M IMPRESSED Flag! This flag recognizes beautiful tree beds and tree care. Staff and Care Captains will be on the lookout this spring for signs of tree stewardship, which reduces tree mortality and helps the tree grow up healthy.

Attend a FREE tree care workshop or check out our TreeLC Library. Learn more