Wednesday's parting shots

Photos by Steven

As seen today on the west side of First Avenue between 11th Street and 12th Street... workers prepping new tree wells for — new trees!...

You can follow this link to request a street tree on your block.

No new trees for these 2 East Village spots

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy

On Dec. 1, the city dug up spaces on multiple East Village sidewalks to plant new trees.

Days later, however, we were surprised to see that the newly created tree wells in front of 40 Avenue B between Third Street and Fourth Street and 26 Avenue A between Second Street and Third Street were filled in ...

We tracked down a city official who told us the following: "The trees can't go in by 40 Avenue B and 26 Avenue A because the buildings have basements under the sidewalks that Parks found when they excavated. [That is likely] true of the others, though without specific addresses cannot confirm."

Meanwhile, you can follow this link to request a street tree on your block — hopefully in a spot not above a basement. 

Tree-mendous work taking place

From the EVG tipline... city crews were out this morning jackhammering portions of the sidewalk on Avenue A just south of Sixth Street (outside Drom)... turns out they are putting in a tree bed. Ditto for the NE corner of Avenue A and Sixth Street... a tree bed is going in there as well outside the former Sidewalk/August Laura space. 

And maybe more trees are on the way elsewhere in the neighborhood?

City removes tree with Dutch elm disease from Tompkins Square Park

Photos by Steven 

Parks workers were in Tompkins Square Park today to remove this American Elm between the main lawn and the dog run... unfortunately, workers said the tree had Dutch elm disease and needed to come down...

Dutch elm disease isn't a stranger to Tompkins Square Park, as we've seen through the years. 

Some background on the diseaase: 

Spread by bark beetles, the disease has decimated elm populations throughout much of Europe and North America.

The leaves on one or more branches of a stricken tree suddenly wilt, turn dull green to yellow or brown, curl, and may drop early. Young, rapidly growing elms may die in one to two months; older or less vigorous trees sometimes take two years or more to succumb. A brown to black discoloration occurs in the white sapwood of wilting branches just under the bark.

Workers remove this elm in Tompkins Square Park

Workers today removed an elm tree said to be dead (or dying) in Tompkins Square Park... (first two photos by Steven)...

The tree is between the dog run and the entrance at Avenue B and Ninth Street, as this photo by Mark Cyr shows...

This is the second large tree that the Park has lost this year.

Noted

Someone left a message on this stump at the entrance to Tompkins Square Park at Seventh Street and Avenue A...

"Jesus is coming. Look busy." 

 OK! Doing laundry.

The tree came down on May 7.

Monday's parting shot

Photos by Steven 

The remains of the massive tree uprooted Saturday afternoon on Avenue A at Seventh Street along Tompkins Square Park. 

Workers removed most of the trunk today...

The Tompkins Square Park Greenmarket is a go today

Despite the downed tree from yesterday afternoon on Seventh Street and Avenue A, the usual vendors for the Tompkins Square Park Greenmarket are here today... set up around the fallen elm — three vendors are on Seventh Street ... the rest along A...

And Steven reports that a tree crew is on the scene...

So long to this sycamore tree on 9th Street

Photos by Steven 

Workers today cut down this sycamore tree on the north side of Ninth Street between First Avenue and Second. 

It was not immediately clear what prompted this removal...

... a worker pointed out a deteriorating and spongy area of the stump...

EVG reader Terry Howell shared this photo...

He writes: 

This lovely sycamore tree and I coexisted peacefully on this block for over 47 years. I don't remember it ever being small. I have no clue why the city choose to murder it today. They will probably say "it's too old," unsafe, etc., etc., etc. My feeling is that Amazon probably needs its own loading space, another restaurant shed needs to be built, a branch might injure a CAR! or it's just inconveniently in the way. I, being old like the sycamore, hope I live long enough to see its spindly replacement sapling, which the city will plant and then ignore. 

Yesterday, city workers also removed a tree on 10th Street just west of First Avenue...

Updated 12:30

The remains of the sycamore after the workers left... 

Monday's parting shot

Preliminary work taking place today for a new tree well (and tree!) on Seventh Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue ... photo by Derek Berg...

Wednesday's parting shots

Here's a look at the damaged (elm?) tree in Tompkins Square Park... a large section of the tree splintered overnight Sunday here on the south end of the Park along Seventh Street... however, crews were able to spare the rest ... 

Photos by Steven...

Another large tree branch down in Tompkins Square Park

This tree (an elm?) splintered some time overnight in Tompkins Square Park... EVG regular Salim shared these photos this morning... this tree is on the south end of the Park along Seventh Street...

Several limbs have fallen in the Park in recent weeks — some due to storms... and some not.

Damage to the Love Tree in Tompkins Square Park

One of the storms this past week caused damage to a honey locust tree in Tompkins Square Park.

Dubbed the Love Tree by some Tompkins Square Park regulars/birdwatchers, the honey locust located in the Cherry Grove along Avenue B between Eighth Street and Ninth Street is a favorite hang for Christo, the resident red-tailed hawk ... who through the years has been seen on the branches here with the various hawks in his life (Dora and Nora aka Not Dora) ... including current companion Amelia...

It has also proven to be a romantic spot for the hawks...

Hopefully, the Parks Department's assessment of the storm-damaged Love Tree won't leave Christo heartbroken.

Thanks to Kim Grover for the top photo and to Steven for the other pics and background

Uprooted tree in Tompkins Square Park

Ugh. One of the beautiful American elms honey locust trees came down in Tompkins Square Park last night over between the main lawn and the dog run ... William Klayer shared these photos...

Combination of winds, wet soil and rotten roots? (Anyone?)...

Updated... Here's a view from the dog run via Derek Berg...

Sunday's opening shot

The cherry blossoms are blooming on Third Avenue at Ninth Street...

Tree down on 11th at B

We had a tree down late this afternoon on 11th Street just east of Avenue B... EVG contributor Stacie Joy happened to be by...

... it caused some damage to the vehicle...

... and the FDNY was quickly on the scene...

... and the roots appear to be rotted...

Updated 10 a.m. 

Vinny & O shared these photos from the clean up this morning...