By Gus Saltonstall
There’s an environmentally friendly way to dispose of Christmas trees: drop them at one of the city’s dozens of mulch sites.
This year, “Mulchfest” runs from December 26 to January 7. It includes tree drop-off sites around the five boroughs, where the Parks Department will take each tree and turn it into wood chips to nourish city green spaces.
There will also be a “Chipping Weekend” on January 6 and 7, where Parks Department workers will break down your tree and give you your very own bag of mulch to use however you’d like. These special sites will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Here are the city-approved locations on the Upper West Side and Morningside Heights where you can drop your tree.
- Central Park: West 106th Street and Central Park West (drop-off only)
- Central Park: West 65th Street and Central Park West (drop-off only)
- Central Park: West 81st Street and Central Park West at the bridle path (chipping and drop-off)
- Riverside Park: West 83rd Street and Riverside Drive (chipping)
- Morningside Park: West 123rd Street and Morningside Avenue (drop-off only)
While more trees were collected across the city in January 2023 than ever before, the Upper West Side did not see the same uptick. In fact, most of the locations on or near the Upper West Side had fewer drop offs than the prior year.
WSR will reach out to the Parks Department in late January to confirm whether Upper West Siders elevated our tree mulching numbers this time around.
Remember to take off all lights, ornaments, and netting before bringing a tree to a Mulchfest site, the Parks Department asks.
View the full list of Mulchfest sites around New York City here.
Subscribe to WSR’s free email newsletter here.
Thanks for the reminder!
I assume that evergreen wreaths can be dropped off as well?
No, because they are intertwined with wire. They might take it if you unwind and remove.all the wire.
Ah, thanks for pointing out.
There ought to be a planned event like a parade of people carrying their trees to drop-off sites. Make it fun and maybe they will come. You could even add music and costumes. In a few years, it could be an UWS tradition.
A Santa Con with trees and drinks?
And please, neighbors: don’t toss it into a “natural” area in a park. It may be a natural product, it will take years to break down, and in the meantime is an eyesore and a hazard and may interfere with the growth of desirable plants.
And also: don’t leave it on the sidewalk in a random place outside a park entrance. You’re just making work for Parks employees who have to cart it away (probably after it’s been peed on by numerous dogs).
I’m certainly not against this program but what is wrong with leaving you tree on the curb? Those are composted.
This program makes people feel better about themselves after subscribing to a business model that grows trees just so they can be cut down to commemorate a holiday and then discarded. Not go greeners.
Wouldn’t it be wonderous if next year NYC Parks visited every Christmas tree seller and had them post a QR code that linked to information on tree disposal? And each tree purchaser could then learn beforehand where and how to dispose of their tree. While that would be well-short of a Christmas Miracle, it could go some distance to get forlorn trees off of the sidewalks.
Many people can’t carry their tree to these sites but they can get it to the curb (or give the super a few bucks to do so) and the dept of sanitation picks up the trees and composted them.
The January 7 date is a bit too early for those of us who celebrate Three Kings Day on January 6. It takes time to remove the ornaments and take the tree down. In the past, this date has been respected by . As Alice below noted, the City used to collect and compost trees left on the curb. Has this been discontinued?
I agree! There’s 12 days of Christmas and they don’t start on Black Friday!
You can leave your tree and wreath on the curb to be picked up and composted. There is no need to drag the tree to “chipping weekend” https://www.nyc.gov/assets/dsny/site/services/food-scraps-and-yard-waste-page/christmas-trees
The early drop offs are unsold trees from the Christmas tree sellers on Broadway who dump their unsold trees and leave town on December 25. The City should put a disposal tax on these so NYC taxpayers don’t have to pay for the disposal of commercial trash…
Is there an easy was to look up city council votes?