Prospect Park is home to Brooklyn’s last remaining forest, 250 acres of beautiful woodlands that are a fragile habitat for wildlife. Prospect Park Alliance Senior Forest Ecologist Howard Goldstein sat down for a chat about the importance of our woodlands to people, plants and animals.

“Nature is intrinsically important to human beings. Being able to interact with nature is imperative to our health and psyche. There are lots of plants and animals in this urban oasis that form an important ecosystem to sustain our environment,” said Howard when asked why the park’s woodlands are important to him. “You can conserve wilderness in the Amazon, or you can conserve nature in the center of a city.”

In an effort to preserve the woodlands, Howard studies the overall health of our forest, as well as the positive impact that the Alliance’s landscape management team is making in the park through its woodland restoration efforts. Two good signs he looks for are fewer vines on trees, and fewer non-native invasive plants. His favorite section of woodlands, North Lullwater Cove, has improved significantly in the five years he’s been with the Alliance. 

When asked about what the public can do to help protect the forest, Howard had the following to say: “Recognize that the forests, the trees, are living, and this habitat is filled with living things. We put in a lot of energy to protect, preserve and restore this green oasis, and the public can do its part. If you love the woods, respect them: stay on paths, don’t jump fences, don’t hang from tree branches, don’t litter, don’t build forts. Follow the park rules and the signs. Being respectful of the woodlands really goes a long way.” 

Learn more about the Alliance’s efforts to preserve the environment. And please spread the word on how to be an environmental champion in Prospect Park by following these simple rules:

• Please dispose of litter in designated receptacles or consider taking your litter with you when you leave the park and disposing of it at home.
• Please stay on paths in our woodland areas, and do not go beyond fencing or build forts in our woodlands: this protects fragile nesting areas for birds, turtles and other wildlife.
• Please keep dogs leashed at all times in the woodlands: off-leash hours are provided in our large meadow areas, learn more on our Things to Do with Dogs page.
• Please do not climb or hang objects on trees in the park: our trees are our environmental treasure. While sap is flowing up to provide nourishment to the emerging buds and flowers, bark is at its most vulnerable. Wounds become easy access for insects and disease.
• Please enjoy the flowers, but don’t pick as they are important for our pollinators, the cycle of life in any wildlife habitat.

Families can enjoy our Pop-Up Audubon programs to explore our natural areas and learn more about park nature! 

Interested in learning more about park stewardship efforts and how you can help keep the park green and vibrant?  Get Involved in our individual and group volunteer programs.

This Thanksgiving season, Prospect Park Alliance gives thanks for Prospect Park’s 30,000 trees, and the community members who funded a record season of commemorative tree plantings: nearly 75 trees, representing nearly 20 native species and raising $150,000 for sustaining Prospect Park.

“Brooklyn’s Backyard was hit hard this year by Tropical Storm Isaias, which felled over 60 trees and left 54 more with severe damage,” said Sue Donoghue, President, Prospect Park Alliance. “Our commemorative tree program is an important way that the community gives back to our park, and many of these trees were planted in areas impacted by the storm.” 

Prospect Park Alliance Vice President of Capital and Landscape Management Christian Zimmerman (center right) joins Alliance horticulturalists to plant a commemorative tree near the Parkside + Ocean Avenue entrance, next to a tree felled by Hurricane Isaias.

And now Prospect Park Alliance knows just how vital these trees are to Brooklyn’s quality of life. A generous grant from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation provided the Alliance with the opportunity to survey roughly half the park’s 30,000 trees to shed light on their significant impact on Brooklyn’s quality of life, and to create a forest management plan. These efforts were funded by the New York State Environmental Protection Fund, and administered by the Urban and Community Forestry Program in the Department of Environmental Conservation Division of Lands and Forests.  

“Supported by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s record $300 million sustained investments in the Environmental Protection Fund, as well as partnerships with communities, environmental groups, and civic organizations, New York has significantly improved the health of community forests,” said Robert Davies, Director, Division of Lands and Forests, and State Forester, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

Through the collected data, and using the U.S. Forest Service’s iTree ECO Report, the Alliance discovered that the 15,698 trees surveyed in Prospect Park trees provide more than $2 million in annual environmental benefits: removing 21,000 pounds of pollutants and 3,000 tons of greenhouse gases from the air, and saving 1,300 megawatt hours of energy consumption and 22 million gallons of stormwater runoff from the city sewer system. 

Prospect Park Alliance conducts commemorative tree plantings each fall and spring. Through this program, roughly 1,100 trees have been planted over the past 30 years. Learn more about our commemorative tree program. 

Want to learn more about Prospect Park’s surveyed trees and their benefit to our community? View the Prospect Park TreeKeeper Interactive Map.

Join Prospect Park Alliance for NYC Climate Week 2020, September 21-27, 2020, and participate in a variety of events online and in the park. Prospect Park’s 585 acres of thriving ecosystems are home to hundreds of species of plants and animals, including: 30,000 trees, Brooklyn’s only lake and last remaining forest. It is an environmental treasure that benefits our health, our planet and our quality of life for millions of Brooklynites, who have the least amount of green space per resident in all of New York City.

Climate change poses serious threats to Prospect Park and our community, and its effects are already being felt in Brooklyn’s Backyard. This year, we’re excited to host a variety of events to in partnership with Natural Areas Conservancy, Turnstile Tours, WE ACT and more, to bring expert voices to the conversation with the public about climate change and equity in the park and beyond. Additionally, those looking to turn their activism into action can sign up to volunteer at cleanups in the park to help keep this green space healthy and vibrant. And don’t forget to check out our Virtual Prospect Park activities to teach kids about climate change and the environment from home. 

Events and Activities:

Virtual Panel: Equity and the Power of Parks
Online, Tuesday, September 22, 6 pm
Free, Register Today
COVID-19. Racial injustice. Climate change. Parks and open spaces have often served as a haven for New Yorkers in good and challenging times. Our parks are essential. They provide a safe and inclusive space to experience nature and come together as a community in celebration and in protest—while cleaning our air and improving our environment. As New York City works to become a more equitable city in the face of these growing challenges, what role do our parks and natural resources play in achieving that goal? Whether they’re mitigating the Urban Heat Island effect or simply providing safe and inclusive spaces to experience nature, our city’s parks need investment by our government, as well as community support, funding, and advocacy to be beneficial for all New Yorkers. Join the Natural Areas Conservancy, Prospect Park Alliance, and WE ACT for a virtual panel discussion as we share how our organizations are employing a wide range of strategies and solutions to advance equity and accessibility in New York City’s parks.

Virtual Event: Tackling Climate Change in Prospect Park
Online, Thursday, September 24, 12:30 pm
Free, Register Today
Join Prospect Park Alliance, Natural Areas Conservancy and Turnstile Tours for a Climate Week NYC virtual program! Learn how climate change has affected Prospect Park and other natural areas in New York City and the projections for the future, including how Prospect Park Alliance and the Natural Areas Conservancy is using the best available science to mitigate the negative effects of climate change and preserve our urban forests. We will be joined by Prospect Park Alliance forest ecologist Howard Goldstein and Justin Bowers, Natural Areas Conservancy program manager for Natural Areas Restoration and the creator of Forest Identification and Restoration Selection Tool (FIRST), which helps forest restoration practitioners manage for and adapt to geographic and climate conditions.

It’s My Park + Green and Go Kit Cleanups
Various Locations, September 21, 25, 26, 27
Free, Register Today
We need you to help keep the park clean and green! Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, both Prospect Park Alliance and NYC Parks have lost critical funding, and our seasonal workforce has been reduced. This combined with an increase in park visitors has led to the park getting much more love than it can handle. Sign up to pitch in and help clean the park landscape during NYC Climate Week, with special It’s My Park Day + Green and Go Kit opportunities. Volunteers are provided a trash grabber, garbage bags and gloves. You must be 18 years old to register, but children are welcome to accompany adults.

Pop-Up Audubon Play and Go Kits
Parkside and Ocean Avenue Entrance, September 27, 12-4 pm
Free
Prospect Park Alliance presents Pop-Up Audubon Play and Go Kits, taking our favorite nature activities from this seasonal program in an easy-to-borrow kit with games and activities such as Bird Bingo, as well as a birdwatching checklist with binoculars, and much more. Families and children can enjoy nature on their own as they explore and learn more about the park. Kits can be borrowed for up to 45 minutes, and will be sanitized between sessions. Pop-Up Audubon is made possible through the generous support of Con Edison.

Virtual Prospect Park: Climate Week Activities
Free
Enjoy a variety of virtual activities for environmental heroes including games and DIY projects that will teach your all about our planet and the importance of protecting it.

Species of the Month is a botanical column written by Prospect Park Alliance Natural Resources Crew Foreperson, A.J. Logan. Learn more about how Prospect Park Alliance is Sustaining the Environment.

This month we’re highlighting an under-appreciated native woodland shrub: 

Aronia melanocarpa, commonly known as chokeberry

Chokeberry (not to be confused with chokecherry, which is a totally different species) is an understory and woodland edge multi-stemmed shrub that can grow to about 6 feet tall, and 6 feet wide, but usually gets to about half that size. It provides interest for humans, birds, insects and small mammals. Its leaves emerge light green with a tinge of red around the edges, then develop into a darker glossy green by summer. It has showy white flowers in spring, dark clusters of berries in summer, and colorful foliage (purplish-red, red, yellow or orange) in the autumn.

The chokeberry blooms in May, and you’ll see the delicate five-petalled white flowers with pink anthers (the part of the stamen that contains the pollen) on the unpollinated flowers. The pollinated flowers have more faded looking anthers. Many different insects will pollinate the flowers: bumblebees, multiple fly species, wasps, and several solitary bee species.

The pollinated flowers will develop deep blue-to black berries which are extremely high in the phytonutrients and antioxidants found in all berries. Unfortunately for humans, these don’t have a great flavor (tart, astringent) which is where the name ‘chokeberry’ supposedly comes from. Critters that like the berries are black-capped chickadees, robins, cedar waxwings, rabbits and white-footed mice, among others. Some birds will only eat them as a last resort, due to the astringent taste.

Chokeberry bushes can be found throughout the Prospect Park woodlands: on Lookout Hill, in the Vale of Cashmere, the Sugar Bowl, the Midwood, among other places. If you cannot find any, fear not: there is no shortage of other blooming things to appreciate in the park at this time!