TREES benefit our urban living:

• offer us shady places to relax, play, gather, & connect with the natural world,

• produce oxygen,

• filter out gaseous & particulate air pollution,

• absorb ground water,

• impede wind,

• deflect noise

• reduce urban heat.

• Our groves are habitats for squirrels, pollinators, year-round & migrating birds.

• The lower Manhattan urban forest remains a center of homeland for the Lenape nation.

• Trees increase private & public property values.

• Trees are memories & are feelings.

challenges to our CHP trees & all urban trees:

• severe weather,

• air pollution,

• urban heat island effect,

• lack of adequate sunlight,

• development,

• limited growing space,

• poor soil,

• poor irrigation,

• competition from invasive species,

• pests, diseases,

• vandalism.

Our urban trees need our stewardship.

City Hall Park, linked to stands in lower Manhattan, contains buckeyes, cedars, weeping and flowering cherries, crabapples, dogwoods, elms, gingko trees, hollies, horse chestnuts, lindens, London planes, magnolias, maples, oaks, pines, redbuds, spruces, sweetgums, hawthorns,  tupelo, catalpa, juneberries (amelanchier), and a plum tree.

Friends of City Hall Park’s

“Tree Days in City Hall Park”

April 15 - 30, 2025

tree planting tree care walking tours Arbor day Ceremony tree art exhibition volunteer gardening & clean ups crowd-sourced sidewalk chalk art forest

Program

April 15  Tuesday

tba TREE PLANTING

Six amelanchier (lelachpattichteak – Lenape) a/k/a juneberry, shadbush, service berry, donated by FCHP, planted in 4 CHP sites with DPR. “Indigenous tree planted to acknowledge its importance to Lenape people in their homeland, here on this land, for thousands of years, and continuing today.” – DPR tree tag. Please see Arbor Day “Named Tree Tour” April 25 5pm.

April 22 Tues, 23 Weds, 29 Tues.

9am – 1pm    2nd FCHP Crowd-Sourced Sidewalk Chalk Art Forest  https://vimeo.com/1083697378

Draw trees on sides of CHP’s paths… realistic, imaginery, decorative or abstract entire trees or groves, branches or leaves, or write text messages about trees. A crowd-sourced collaborative artwork and public policy issue petition, very likely the world’s largest in history. Non-toxic sidewalk chalk provided at Welcome Tables. All ages and drawing skill levels. School groups can reserve 1-4 15-minute chalking slots.

April 22  Tuesday EARTH DAY  

9am - 1pm   Cypress Creek Renewables, DearDoc, KC3, KO2, & community volunteers spring gardening

Join Friends of CHP, Cypress Creek Renewables’, DearDoc’s, KO2’s and KC3’s staff volunteer teams for tree care, gardening, & clean up + Sidewalk Chalk Art Forest.

5 – 7pm  Opening reception / community gathering

“Celebrating City Hall Park Trees” One Art Space  23 Warren Street

Tree art gallery group exhibition, book talks & craft activities. April 22 Tuesday – April 27 Sunday  noon  – 8pm. For activities schedule & info: KarlssonGail@gmail.com

•   Gail Karlsson – curator, photo prints from new book Meeting Trees in City Hall Park

•   Barbara Dahl –  drawings of leaves from new book Trees of City Hall Park

• Joe Baker –  Lenapehoking Stump pen & ink drawing

• Albert Zylyftari –  CHP canopy watercolor by CHP street artist

• Skip Blumberg –  CHP canopy photographs

•   George Vellonakis –  signed CHP architectural design print

• Adele Rahte –  trees collage

• Mary Zehngutt –  artwork inspired by new research in tree communication

• William Zehngutt –  urban parks trees oil paintings

• Joan Farrenkopf –  artistic tribute to ginko trees  

• Bradley Tryon  – oil, pastel & acrylic painting of a spirited tree
  
  

  
  

April 23   Wednesday 

9am – 1pm Mediaocean & community volunteers spring gardening

Join Mediaocean’s volunteer team and Friends of CHP for planting 28 bushes! that Mediaocean donated, spring gardening, & clean up + Sidewalk Chalk Art Forest.

April 25 Friday ARBOR DAY

8am   Squirrel Walk & Talk

Join squirrel expert, Ron Sosenko, “The Squirrel Whistler,” for an informational talk about these wild residents, their habits, their habitat, and an opportunity to get to know Ron’s bushy-tailed friends one-on-one (with close-up photo opportunities). Whether you think squirrels are loveable reminders of the natural world or another urban pest, CHP has been the habitat for the small indigenous mammals since before first human habitation of this forest. We all dwell in the squirrels’ home turf. It’s in our interest to get to know the critters.

10 am   Introduction to Trees & Birds in CHP

Friend of CHP, nature writer, photographer, & bird watcher Gail Karlsson leads an Arbor Day walk through City Hall Park to point out important trees (and their identifying spring characteristics) featured in her new book Meeting Trees in City Hall Park, while looking out for resident robins and crows, as well as migrating birds heading north for spring breeding. Bring your binoculars or long-lens camera.

Noon   Ranger’s Tree ID Tour 

Parks Department Urban Park Rangers Tofte & Johnston leads an edifying one-hour spring-time lunch-time walk through our local forest surrounding City Hall, identifying species and estimating ages

2pm   This Land according to Lenape

Walk on CHP land remembering the forest, terrain & wildlife habitat features, Lenape’s practical uses of & deeper relationships with trees, and spiritual aspects of our precious land. Before 1625, a Lenape village occupied near to City Hall Park, within the Lenapehoking region from the Hudson Valley to  Chesapeake Bay. The original forest was used in harmony by the first people for thousands of years, before European brutal colonization and forced removal of all Lenapes. This land and all Lenapehoking actively remain Lenape nation’s homeland.

4pm   CHP Arbor Day Ceremony – Celebrating City Hall Park Trees!

Focussing on positive action to steward CHP’s fragile, valuable trees and all NYC’s urban forest as we deal with climate change.

Arbor Day Civic Ceremony  Speakers: NYS Senator Brian Kavanagh, Councilmember Shekar Krishnan (Parks Committee Chair), District One Councilmember Chris Marte, Parks Dept Manhattan Commissioner Tricia Shimamura.

5pm   Named Trees Walk

Identifying the named trees in and near City Hall Park:

  1-3,5. Four sites with six “lelachpattichteak” (Lenape) indigenous amelanchier (a/k/a shadbush, juneberry, service berry) trees, planted by DPR and volunteers, donated by FCHP, “to acknowledge its importance to Lenape people” Tag installation, Arbor Day 2025.

    4. “The Freedom Tree” - new tree? “with the vision of universal freedom” 1973.

    6. “Canadian Burr Oak” “Gift of Canada to New York City” on Arbor Day 1967. Recent recipient of prestigious DPR “Great Tree” designation! Arbor Day 2025.

    7. Largest veteran tree in CHP right in front of the City Council Chamber! Please suggest a name! “Hero Tree” “Civic Activist Tree” “Hanging Tree” “Muscle Tree” ?

April 26 Saturday  “It’s My Park”  

9am – 1pm  FCHP & CHPC’s It’s My Park Day

Annual Partnership for Parks-sponsored spring green-up, celebrating belated Earth Day. Collaborating with City Hall Park Conservancy, including flower planting, kids’ activities, music, as well as cleanup throughout CHP. More:  info@chpc-nyc.org

10am Tree Care Workshop - basic cultivation, irrigation and mulching techniques, promoting tree health. Cultivate our trees as long as you want until tool cleaning before 1pm.

April 29 Tuesday  

9am - 1pm  AHRC volunteers, Kyndryl's Social Impact Team, and Divergent Teambuilders & community volunteers spring gardening

Join AHRC team, Kyndryl's Social Impact Team, Divergent Teambuilders and Friends of CHP for tree care, weeding, mulching & clean up + Sidewalk Chalk Art Forest.

April 30  Wednesday   

9am – 1pm  Community volunteer spring gardening

Sponsored by City Parks Foundation & FCHP. Join corporate volunteer community service team and Friends of CHP for tree care, weeding, mulching & clean up.  

Walking Tour Guides & Artists

Ron Sosenko  Squirrel Walk & Talk Therapeutic plants & herbs company founder & owner, “The Squirrel Whistler.” https://newyork.forumdaily.com/en/povelitel-nyu-jorkskix-belok-kak-potomok-immigrantov-iz-ukrainy-stal-zvezdoj-goroda/

Gail Karlsson   Introduction to Trees & Birds in CHP, Celebrating CHP Trees curator & artwork Environmental lawyer, nature writer, photographer, bird watcher, blogger. Author/photographer of Meeting Trees in City Hall Park (2025) & A Birds’ Guide to the Battery and NY Harbor (2023), Creator of The Battery’s Bird Banners, on display since June 2022. https://www.thebattery.org/programs/birdbanners/ https://gailkarlssonbirdsnyc.blogspot.com/

Joe Baker Celebrating CHP Trees Lenape Center Executive Director & Co-founder, artist, curator, writer, educator.  https://lenape.center/about-us       https://hvfarmhub.org/conversation-with-joe-baker/f

Urban Park Ranger Ranger’s Tree ID Tour https://www.nycgovparks.org/programs/rangers

 Skip Blumberg     Named Trees Walk, Arbor Day Civic Ceremony, Celebrating CHP Trees Founder 1995, Friends of City Hall Park, producer “Tree Days,” internationally-recognized artist, art & documentary filmmaker, photographer.  http://www.SkipBlumberg.com

Barbara Dahl     Celebrating CHP Trees Born in the Northwoods of Minnesota, world traveler & lay climatologist, with a career rooted in agriculture. Author & artist, Trees of Carroll Park and Trees of City Hall Park.

Albert Zylyftari     Celebrating CHP Trees Albanian-American street artist of original & limited-edition lower Manhattan pen & ink and watercolors landscapes. Al fresco exhibition most days on NE Plaza south City Hall fence.

George Vellonakis  Celebrating CHP Trees Landscape Architect, Designer City Hall Park 1999 renovation and many other DPR parks, educator, public speaker, preservationist. https://www.bhsusa.com/real-estate-agent/george-vellonakis

 Joan Farrenkopf    Celebrating CHP Trees Globally active artist who creates nature-themed performances, public installations, placemaking and community engagement projects.  joanfarrenkopf.com

 Adele Rahte     Celebrating CHP Trees City landscape collage artist.  Instagram @adelerahte

 Mary Zehngut      Celebrating CHP Trees             Painter and ceramicist.    maryzehngut.com

William Zehngut     Celebrating CHP Trees En plein air city landscape painter.   williamzehngutstudio.com

Bradley Tryon     Celebrating CHP Trees Uses variety of media to produce flowers of the imagination, dancing trees, and wildly animated landscapes. www.instagram.com/tryonbradley/