The Tree Year

The English elm is still in leaf as of December 12. The Tree Year is winding down with only 11 days remaining in the year.  This is our final post about the English elm in Washington Square Park for the Tree Year project.  We would like to leave you with this amazing information about the […]

In the previous post in this series, we wrote about the deepening color and thickening canopy of the English Elm with the onset of summer. Whenever we walk by the elm, we observe squirrels eating, playing, standing, or engaged in other activities.  In the spring, they would likely eat elm buds.  With fewer buds to eat in […]

The bright, green spring leaves of the English Elm (Ulmus procera) in the northwest corner of Washington Square Park have darkened and the canopy has thickened, too. Though he was writing about the American elm (U. americana), Arthur Plotnick’s description of the shading characteristics of the tree is accurate of this U. procera. The tall […]

I am continuing with The Tree Year project. The mature English Elm in the northwest corner of Washington Square Park is leafing out. The seeds are almost gone – dispersed by wind and squirrels and birds.  Though “[t]he wildlife value of elms is low as compared with oaks, maples, and dogwoods,” elm seeds and buds “are […]

Since learning about The Tree Year 2011 project from a Metropolitan Field Guide post, I have been contemplating which tree in my neighborhood to observe this year.  (The United Nations declared 2011 the International Year of Forests.)  Should record the blooming of the Callery pear we adopted as part of MillionTreesNYC?  The London planetrees I […]