New Yorkers celebrated the 19th annual MulchFest last weekend by recycling their Christmas trees at more than 80 locations citywide. The chipped trees become compost that will nourish parks, gardens and woodsy public areas around the city. At left, Mitchell Silver, the Parks Department’s commissioner, showed how it’s done as he mulched the program’s first trees this year on Thurs., Jan. 8, in Tompkins Square Park. Participants were invited to take a free bag of mulch home. In all, more than 30,000 trees were recycled. In a statement, Mayor de Blaiso said, “This city is committed to being the greenest big city in the world, and events like MulchFest are an important step toward achieving this critical goal.”
