New York City has designated 120 Great Trees in the Parks Department roster for historical, botanical, or cultural significance, nominated by residents. The trees represent the diversity of the city's foliage and are marked with small rectangular Great Trees of New York signs, located on public and private property. Twenty-five standout trees are highlighted, and visitors can tap tree icons to create a list of five favorites. Observers are encouraged to study bark, leaves, roots and branches and note surrounding changes over years and centuries. A magnolia on Lafayette Avenue was saved in 1968 by Hattie Carthan, who founded the Bedford-Stuyvesant Beautification Committee and helped plant over 1,500 trees; that magnolia became the city's sole remaining landmark tree.
One could argue that all trees are great. But for the past 40 years, New York City has declared certain truly exceptional trees to be officially great. There are 120 Great Trees in the Parks Department's roster, nominated by residents for their historical, botanical or cultural significance. Together, they represent the diversity of New York's foliage. All are marked with a small rectangular Great Trees of New York sign, either on the tree or nearby.
In 1968, this magnolia tree, then over 40 feet tall, was supposed to be cut down to make way for an apartment complex. Hattie Carthan jumped into action. Ms. Carthan, an environmentalist and activist in the Black community, moved to Brooklyn in 1928 and had a deep love for trees. In 1966, she founded the Bedford-Stuyvesant Beautification Committee, which planted more than 1,500 trees.
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