iNaturalist Workshops, The High Line, Saturday September 25

Updated 2021-09-25: Added Links and QR Codes to "Getting Started with iNaturalist".

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I'm pleased to announce that Saturday, September 25th, I will be leading two iNaturalist Workshops "in the field" at The High Line. This is one of several workshops, and many other events, they have scheduled for Insectageddon, which runs from 3-6pm that Saturday afternoon.

I'll be doing two walks:

• 3:15-4:15 pm
• 4:45-5:45 pm

When not out on one of the walks, I'll have a table in The High Line's Chelsea Market Passage, between 15th and 16th Streets. Please sign up there for one of the two workshops, as space will be limited. Each walk will start out from that location.

iNaturalist Workshop
Hosted by Chris Kreussling, aka “Flatbush Gardener”
Join Chris Kreussling for a walk on the High Line to explore plant and insect interactions and learn about the citizen scientist observation gathering tool iNaturalist. Tours begin at 3:30 and 4:45; please sign up upon arrival at Chris’s table in Chelsea Market Passage. Chris is a Brooklyn naturalist and gardener specializing in gardening with native plants to create habitat for pollinators and other invertebrates.

Visiting the High Line

Note that there are weekend restrictions in place for visitors to The High Line. You must register for timed entry; pre-registration is highly recommended. The only weekend entrances open are at Gansevoort Street, 23rd Street, and 30th Street. 

Please give yourself plenty of time to get to my table in Chelse Market Passage for the start of the walk. The 14th Street entrance is exit-only on weekends. The closest weekend entrance is Gansevoort Street, at the corner of Washington Street, the southern end of The High Line. This entrance is just three blocks south of 14th Street.

Getting Started with iNaturalist

1. Sign up at https://www.inaturalist.org/signup
   
   
   
   
   
   • You must be 13 or older.
   • You can link to your existing social media account, such as Twitter or Facebook
   • If you don't have an existing social media account you want to link to, you can create a new account with a valid email address
2. If you have existing photos you want to identify, you can begin uploading them to iNaturalist through your Web browser.
3. Recommended: Also install the iNaturalist app on your Android phone or iPhone or other Apple device. Be sure to link it to the account you just created. You can then take photos on your phone and upload them directly to iNaturalist.
   
   Android:
   https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.inaturalist.android
   
   
   
   
   Apple/iPhone:
   https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/inaturalist/id421397028?mt=8
   
   
   
   
   

Related Content

Native Pollinator Walks, Wave Hill, Sunday, June 27, 2021-06-14
Pollinator Safari: Urban Insect Gardening with Native Plants, 2019-06-23
NYC Wildflower Week  Tour of my Gardens, 2016-05-15
NYC Wildflower Week Pollinator Safari of my Gardens, 2014-06-21

Links

iNaturalist

Getting Started

Central Park Rabies Outbreak

This month, 23 raccoons in and around Central Park have tested positive for rabies. In addition, 11 animals tested positive during December 2009, bringing the two-month total to 34.



In contrast, from 2003-2008, only one raccoon tested positive in Manhattan. In 2008, only 19 animals tested positive for all of New York City.

This increase may be the result of increased surveillance by the Health Department:

With the identification of three raccoons with rabies in Manhattan’s Central Park in recent months – two during the past week – the Health Department is cautioning New Yorkers to stay away from raccoons, skunks, bats, stray dogs and cats and other wild animals that can carry rabies. The recent cluster of findings suggests that rabies is being transmitted among raccoons in the park. The Health Department is increasing surveillance efforts to determine the extent of the problem.
- Press Release, 2009-12-07

Historically, raccoons are by far the most commonly reported animal, comprising about 3/4 of reports from 1992-2008. Raccoons are nocturnal, and should be active only at night. Anyone observing a raccoon active during the daytime, or any animal that appears disoriented, placid, or aggressive, should call 311 immediately to report the location. Animal attacks should be reported to 911.

Blessing of the Animals, Chelsea Community Church

Update 2009-10-12: Added story about Smokey.

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Blog Widow and Annie, the new kitten, at the Blessing of the Animals service at Chelsea Community Church earlier today.


An off-topic, i.e. non-gardening, post.

In some recognition of National Coming Out Day, some non-gardening factoids about me:

• I'm an atheist.
  
• My partner, known as Blog Widow, is an ordained minister, among many other talents.
  
• People who've known me a long time think that's hysterical.
  

It takes some enticement to get me into church. Filling the pews with dogs and other companion animals kinda does it for me.

This is also an opportunity to introduce Annie.


Annie is a six-month old kitten we adopted two weeks ago from Sean Casey Animal Rescue in Kensington. We've been wanting to adopt a second cat, thinking that Ripley, the old soul, would do better with some companionship when we're out during the day. Ummm, yeah. That'll work. Eventually.

Today was Annie's "coming out," as we took her to the Blessing of the Animals service at Blog Widow's church, Chelsea Community Church. Mostly dogs were present; Annie was one of four cats, by my count, in attendance. She even made an appearance on stage when Blog Widow introduced her to the congregation for his general blessing over those assembled, human and otherwise.

Rabies reminder from NYC DOH

Not to fan the annual flames of rabies hysteria we usually get in the Brooklyn blogosphere, but the New York City Department of Health, in response to recent identification of rabid animals in Manhattan, the Bronx, and Queens, issued a press release today to remind New Yorkers to 1) avoid contact with wild animals, and 2) have your pets vaccinated for rabies. Note that NYC law requires rabies vaccinations of pets.

Six rabid animals — all raccoons — have been identified in New York City this year. Four were found in the Bronx, one in Manhattan (near Inwood Hill Park), and one in Queens (Long Island City). Raccoons are the most commonly reported rabid animals in New York City. Rabid raccoons are a relatively common occurrence in Staten Island and the Bronx, but rare in Queens and Manhattan. Bats with rabies have also been found in all five boroughs.

People and unvaccinated animals can get rabies, most often through a bite from an infected animal. Infection leads to a severe brain disease that causes death unless the person is treated promptly after being bitten. To reduce the risk of rabies, New Yorkers should avoid all wild animals, as well as any animal that seems sick, disoriented or unusually placid or aggressive. Report such animals by calling 311. Animals that have attacked or may attack should be reported to 911.

The six reported animals lags far behind the 19 reports for 2008. In recent history, Staten Island has the highest incidence of rabies among wild animals, followed closely by the Bronx. Queens, Manhattan and Brooklyn lag far behind. See Rabies in NYC: Facts and Figures for more info.

To protect yourself against rabies

• Do not touch or feed wild animals, or stray dogs or cats.
  
• Keep garbage in tightly sealed containers.
  
• Stay away from any animal that is behaving aggressively or a wild animal that appears ill or is acting unusually friendly. Call 311 or your local precinct to report the animal.
  
• If you find a bat indoors that may have had contact with someone, do not release it before calling 311 to determine whether it should be tested. For information on how to safely capture a bat, visit http://www.health.state.ny.us/diseases/communicable/zoonoses/rabies/.

To protect your pet against rabies

• Make sure your dog or cat is up-to-date on rabies vaccinations.
  
• Do not leave your pets outdoors unattended.
  
• Do not try to separate animals that are fighting.
• If your pet has been in contact with an animal that might be rabid, contact your veterinarian, and report the incident to 311.
  
• Feed pets indoors.
  

If you are bitten by an animal

• Immediately wash the wound with lots of soap and water.
  
• Seek medical care from your health care provider.
  
• If you know where the animal is, call 311 to have it captured.
• If the animal is a pet, get the owner's name, address and telephone number to give to the Health Department so they can ensure the animal is not rabid.
• Call the Animal Bite Unit (212-676-2483) between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., or file a report online at www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/vet/vetegp.shtml.
  
• For information about medical follow-up, call 311 or your medical provider.

[bit.ly]

Related Content

Rabies in NYC: Facts and Figures, 2008-07-08
Meta: Rabies More Popular Than Sex, 2007-03-07
News: Raccoon Tests Positive for Rabies in Manhattan, 2007-02-28

Links

Press Release

Community Blogging at HDC Coffee Talk, February 2

I am very proud to have been invited to speak at the Historic Districts Council's (HDC) next event in their Coffee Talk series on the morning of February 2, on the topic of "Community Blogging".

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Site of a teardown of a detached Victorian house in Ditmas Park West, Flatbush, Brooklyn


Community Blogging
Monday Morning Coffee Talk, with the Flatbush Gardener

Monday, February 2nd, 2009
8:30-10:00am

Neighborhood Preservation Center
232 East 11th Street
New York, NY 10003

Community bloggers are increasingly the voice of local neighborhoods. As larger newspapers focus less and less on the day to day, neighborhood-based blogs have assumed the role of providing updated, detailed accounts of the issues that directly affect built environment and quality of life. With little more than an internet connection and a digital camera, these activist reporters monitor communities with a passion and in the process end up mobilizing their fellow neighbors to take action and make change.

Join Chris Kreussling, otherwise known as the Flatbush Gardener, as he recounts his blogging experiences since launching his site in 2006. Mr. Kreussling's blog covers a number of local issues in great detail - including the proposed Flatbush rezoning, citywide greenspace concerns, and Brooklyn community gardens - and he's learned a great deal along the way.From attracting new readers, to launching related email list-serves, to understanding what "Twitter" and other social media sites are all about, February's talk will tackle the blogging industry head-on and give you the tools for starting your own.

This event is FREE to the public. Reservations are required, as space is limited. For more information, please contact Lauren Belfer at (212) 614-9107 or lbelfer@hdc.org.

The Historic Districts Council Neighborhood Partners Program is sponsored in part by Deutsche Bank, The New York Community Trust, Lily Auchincloss Foundation, Assembly Members Deborah J. Glick & Richard N. Gottfried, and State Senators Thomas K. Duane, Liz Krueger, Andrew J. Lanza & Diane J. Savino.

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Related Content

Flatbush Rezoning

New Flatbush Rezoning Proposal Gets It Right, 2008.10.07

Community Gardens

Gardens are not Parks, Parks are not Gardens: New challenges facing Brooklyn's community gardens, 2008.11.06

Green Space

Barbara Corcoran Hates the Earth, 2007.11.18
Basic Research: The State of the Forest in New York City, 2007.11.12
Landscape and Politics in Brooklyn's City Council District 40, 2007.02.14
NASA Earth Observatory Maps NYC's Heat Island, Block by Block, 2006.08.01

Links

HDC Community Blogging: HDC Monday Morning Coffee Talk, February 2nd
Historic Districts Council Web site

Events for a Brooklyn Gardener-Blogger

[Updated 2007.05.01 21:00 EDT: Added Merchant's House Museum Plant Sale.]

Some quick notes on upcoming events, most of which I've previously written about.

This Weekend

Today and Tomorrow, April 28 & 29, 10am-6pm
Sakura Matsuri at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden

The single most popular annual event at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, tens of thousands of people turn out for the Cherry Blossom Festival every year. Entrance lines and waits are long. BBG's Blossom Status Map shows that the only cherry trees not in bloom at BBG right now are those that have already finished their show. This will surely pump up the crowds even more.

Rain is predicted both Saturday and Sunday this weekend. This morning started out beautiful and sunny, with blue skies, but it's already clouding over. The rains will keep the crowds down. I have other commitments this weekend, or I would be there right now.

Next week

May 1-3, hours vary
Brooklyn Botanic Garden Plant Sale

This may be BBG's second most popular annual event. The Garden closes early on Tuesday, May 1, to re-open for the Members-Only Preview Sale from 4:30-8pm. This is a feeding frenzy of plant fanatics. If you're not already a BBG member, you can purchase a membership on-site. I'm going to try stopping by there after work on Tuesday if I can get out early enough. Anyone can visit the public sale on Wednesday, May 2, from 9am to 7pm, or Thursday, May 3, from 9am to 12noon.

Thursday, May 3, 11am-5pm
Second Annual Battery Plant Sale, The Battery, Downtown Manhattan

After September 11, the Gardens of Remembrance were planted along The Battery, at the southernmost tip of Manhattan. The plants and gardens are now entering their fifth year. As in any mature garden, the plants need to be divided and replanted. The extra divisions go into their plant sale.

The post card says the plants are "organic, pest-free, and hardy." They have to be "hardy". They're growing more or less on the shore of downtown Manhattan, subject to winter winds and salt spray. Judging from the plant list for last year's sale, selections are varied and interesting. Most of the plants, all perennials, require or prefer full sun. I could use some in the developing sunny, mixed border along the south side of the house. The only chance I have to get there is on my lunch break.

Following Week

Sunday, May 6, 10am-12noon
Merchant's House Museum Annual Plant Sale

Located in Manhattan at 29 East 4th Street, between Lafayette St. and the Bowery, the Merchant's House Museum plant sale benefits the Museum's Garden Fund. Selections include divisions and seedlings from their historic garden, such as astilbes, hostas, and epimediums.

Thursday, May 10, 8pm
Second Annual Brooklyn Blogfest

This will be at the Old Stone House in J. J. Byrne Memorial Park at 5th Avenue and 3rd Street in Park Slope. I'm really looking forward to meeting some of the other Brooklyn bloggers I read. And I should have my Flickr cards in hand to give out. Collect the whole set!

Gardening Don't

If you're going to water your garden with a hose held at waist level, at least wear pants.

This was a window display for Paul Smith at a clothing store on 5th Avenue near 17th Street in Manhattan a few weeks ago. Note the backdrop of pretty flower pictures. And the hose unreeling from the satchel bag. I guess gardening fantasies sell to their demographic.

Event, April 14, Manhattan: Identification Day at the American Museum of Natural History

An annual event at the American Museum of Natural History, Identification Day provides "the public" with an opportunity to pick the brains of experts:

If you like PBS's Antiques Roadshow, you'll love ID Day at the Museum, an annual favorite when Museum scientists and experts are at the ready to solve your mysteries of natural history. Bring in backyard finds, basement curios, and flea market discoveries to find out if that funny rock is a fossil or not, or if a certain artifact is a cultural treasure. Whatever the outcome, the event is sure to be fun and informative!
- AMNH email

Unlike Roadshow, however, they don't do appraisals.

I've never gone with anything to identify. It's just as much fun to stand by a table, listen in, and watch.

Some student of archaeology or anthropology, presumably working on some thesis or other, and having no knowledge of his own of vertebrate anatomy, brought in several shoeboxes of animal bones recovered from a site. When there was noone else waiting for an identification, the woman at the table, clearly irritated but patient, was going through the boxes, bone by bone, to identify them. The student transcribed, barely able to keep up with her identifications as she picked and identified up bone after bone.

I watched as she picked up one tiny fragment of a bone, the size of a pinky nail. She took one look at it, declared "turtle femur," and set it aside.

She was impressive. For some reason, "turtle femur" has just stuck in my mind all these years.

News: DEA busts a different kind of CSA in Washington Heights

Regardless of other issues raised by this story, as a gardener I am impressed by the horticultural prowess, discipline, and commitment it takes to keep 700 plants of any kind alive ... indoors ... under lights:

WNBC reported, "It took investigators several hours to remove all of the drug-related material from the location." Also, it was "unusual" for so many pot plants to be grown in one city location.
- 700 Marijuana Plants Found in Apartment, Gothamist

Drug Enforcement agents raided a Washington Heights apartment building on Tuesday and found a virtual "forest" of marijuana plants being grown on one floor of the building.
...
Con Edison electrical experts were also called in to help dismantle the drug facility because of the advanced lighting that was installed across five rooms of the building.
- Marijuana 'Forest' Found In Manhattan Building, WNBC

I'm strictly an outdoor gardener. I can't even keep a houseplant alive. Nevertheless, I will state for the record that this is not the sort of CSA I hope to see in my neighborhood.

"MADAME, your attacks on our climbing hydrangeas are VANDALISM."

Okay, other than the occasional glance over a fellow commuters' shoulder while riding the subway, I do not read the New York Post. I heard about this story this morning on NY1's In The Papers segment. The most impressive thing about this story? These guys are growing climbing hydrangea in a tree pit!

A bushwhacker has become a thorn in the side of residents who love two sidewalk gardens on East 79th Street. The mystery woman has become the street's Public Enemy No. 1 by ripping down climbing hydrangea vines, which produce brilliant white flowers in summer.

- Vandal's Vine Mess, East Side Anti-Plant Spree, New York Post, March 15, 2007

And, my spidey senses (aka gaydar) tell me this story fits the Gays in Gardening meme.

Fed up with the vine villain, Charles Dean and Skip Wachsberger, who tend the gardens, have posted signs politely ordering her to stop.

Two guys cooperatively gardening. That could be innocent enough.

"MADAME, your attacks on our climbing hydrangeas are VANDALISM. Please stop it! The gardener," the sign reads.

Okay, they adddress the vandal as "Madame". That's kinda gay.

The gardens are in front of 225 E. 79th St., a high-rise between Second and Third avenues. Each [gardener?] has a tree.

Joe Cinni, the building's super, has seen the uptown vandal and said she claims the vines are choking the trees.

"No! No! Absolutely not!" responded Dean, 58. "Hydrangeas are grown in gardens all over the world. They are not dangerous like that," he said. "She thinks she's doing something to protect the trees, but she's misguided."

Said Wachsberger, 62, "The vines co-exist with the trees. Climbing hydrangeas are very slow-growing."

Wachsberger is a landscape designer and he and Dean edited "Of Leaf and Flower," an award-winning book of poems and short stories about the emotions that plants inspire.

Okay, that's really gay.

The dispute took root a year ago when Cinni saw the hydrangea snipper, a woman in her mid-50s, pulling down the vines. He stopped her. ... Six weeks ago - in what appeared to be a pre-emptive strike - the "vigilante" popped up and began ripping the vines down.

"All of a sudden, I see this woman pulling down the vines with her hands. When I tell her, 'Stop,' she starts yelling at me that these are going to kill the trees," Cinni said.

"I told her to stop pulling them and call 311 if she had a problem. She walked away from me and I haven't seen her since." Dean said he tied the vines to the trees with string, but two weeks ago the woman cut the string. He tied the vines up again.

"She has good intentions, but she's misinformed," Wachsberger said.

Strong words.

Images of the Children's Aid Society

Last night I attended the Opening Night Reception of the Historic District Council's 13th Annual Preservation Conference. The event was held at the Children's Aid Society at 219 Sullivan Street. This is within the boundaries proposed by the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation for a new South Village Historic District.



Today I'll be attending the all-day conference at Hunter College. I'm already running late! So here's just a few photographic impressions of last night's location. More later tonight.

News: Raccoon Tests Positive for Rabies in Manhattan

The NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene announced today that a raccoon has tested positive for rabies in Manhattan. Rabies is prevalent in Staten Island. it seems just a matter of time before it's detected in Brooklyn.

A raccoon dropped off by two New Yorkers at the Manhattan Animal Care and Control Shelter tested positive for rabies yesterday, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene reported today. The Health Department is trying to identify these individuals, who may have been exposed to rabies while handling the animal. Rabies is a fatal disease, but it can be prevented if exposed individuals get rabies shots. There has not been a case of human rabies in New York City for more than 50 years.

The individuals brought the injured raccoon, wrapped in a blanket and placed in a pet carrier, to the East 110th Street shelter on the evening of Friday, February 23rd. They were described as a white man and woman in their thirties wearing medical scrubs. They left before giving any contact information to the shelter staff. [Okay, so how do you know they were New Yorkers as you state in the first paragraph?!] These people should seek medical care immediately and call 311 to notify the Health Department. The Health Department is also alerting City doctors and veterinarians of the possible exposure.

It is not known if this raccoon was living in Manhattan, which has had very few cases of rabid animals compared to Staten Island and the Bronx. It may have been transported from another borough. This raccoon is the first animal that has tested positive in Manhattan in 2007; one bat tested positive in 2006. DOHMH warns New Yorkers to avoid contact with stray cats and dogs or other potentially rabid animals such as raccoons, skunks, or opossums and to ensure that their pets’ rabies vaccinations are kept up to date.

To protect yourself against rabies:

Rabies is most often transmitted through the bite or scratch of an infected animal or when saliva of the infected animal comes into contact with an open wound or mucous membrane (such as nose or mouth). Simple contact with a wild animal will not result in rabies.

• Do not touch or feed wild animals, stray dogs or cats, or bats.
• Keep garbage in tightly sealed containers.
• Stay away from any animal that is displaying unusual behavior or appears ill, particularly if the animal is behaving aggressively or if a wild animal acts unusually friendly. Call 311 to report animals that are displaying these or other unusual behaviors.
  

To protect your pet against rabies:

• Make sure your dog or cat is up-to-date on its rabies vaccinations.
• Do not leave your pets outdoors unattended.
• If your pet has been in contact with an animal that might be rabid, contact your veterinarian.
• Feed pets indoors.
  

If you are bitten by an animal:

• First, wash the wound with soap and water IMMEDIATELY.
• Talk to a doctor right away to see if you need tetanus or rabies shots. If you don’t have a regular doctor, go to a hospital emergency room.
• Call 311 to report the bite.

Related Content

Raccoons in Brooklyn, 2006-07-31

Links

Press Release

Grief & Gardening #2: Five Years After, "Ths Transetorey Life"

There are three sections to this post:

1. Trinity
2. Ground Zero
3. St. Paul's

Trinity

This is a flower border at one of my favorite gardens to visit. Earlier in the year, there has been a succession of Iris, Hemerocallis (Daylilies), Hosta, and other common and sturdy garden perennials. There are ferns, and flowering cherry trees on the grounds.

The garden is the cemetery at Trinity Church in downtown Manhattan, just down the block from Ground Zero. The photo above is looking south, toward the church itself. Here's another view looking east, toward Broadway, which is just on the other side of the wrought iron fence surrounding the cemetery.


This really is one of my favorite gardens to visit. First off, I love cemeteries. During my troubled adolescence, a cemetery at the end of our street was a refuge for me, a place I could go where no one would bother me, a place of solitude, and quiet. I came to enjoy the history of it, reading the stones to learn about people's lives, how young they died, how many of them were children, and infants.

This garden cemetery also reminds me of impermanence. When I walk through it, I'm on my way to work, in the financial district of downtown Manhattan. It's easy to get stressed about work. This walk helps me keep a healthier perspective on things. Check out the engraving on this headstone.

"Here Lyes ye Body of John Craig Who Departed ths Transetorey Life September ye 14 1747 Aged 47 years" At 47 years, he was an old man when he died. He could have easily been a grandfather. And yet, "ths Transetorey Life" ... Next week is the 259th anniversary of his death. How many lifetimes, how many generations, is 259 years?

Another thing I enjoy about visiting this garden cemetery is the ritual I've developed for entering it. There's really only one way: from the Rector Street station on the R/W subway line. This lets me out on Church Street. After emerging from the subway, the streetscape is the photo below.

This is Church Street, looking north. Ground Zero (of which more below) is just one block away, where the buildings end on the left-hand side. On the right-hand side is a massive, and seemingly ancient, sandstone block wall. See the trees peeking out over the top of it? Those are from the garden cemetery. Here's a view of the church from this vantage.

That's right: the cemetery is two stories above your head. Behind those stone blocks are the dead. To reach the cemetery, we have to climb still further, through the street-level opening in the wall, of which we only see the top of its gothic arch in the photo above, and up another two flights of stairs. Lest one forget, the sculpture set in the stone above the passageway is no cherub.

Ground Zero

I wrote earlier this week about the arbitrariness of anniversaries. But I have been feeling this one, the 5th anniversary of 9/11. The city is feeling it, too. Peoples' grief is closer to the surface, more accessible. Mine certainly is. I've also been remembering a lot of what it was like in the city right after. There are reminders of it everywhere, on the news, in the papers, special exhibits and events, and especially, at Ground Zero.

A Tribute Center was dedicated this week on Liberty Street, on the south side of Ground Zero. I'd heard about it and I went there after work on Thursday. The doors had signs on them which said "Closed." There was a couple next to me also looking at the signs. Someone inside saw them and opened the door for them. I thought they were just closing for the day, and let us in anyway. I tailgated in. I didn't realize that it's not open to the public until September 18.

Anyway, it's quite a collection. They have artifacts. It took me a while to figure out what this object was. When I did, it just shocked me. I didn't have my camera with me, just my camera-phone/phonecam. It's a lousy picture, and I'll go back and get a better one.


Another thing which shook me was some photographs in one of the display cases. There was a contact print of a couple of frames from a still camera, with some clear problems with light leakage along the top of the frame. The text explained that these photographs were taken by a photographer on the scene. His camera was damaged, and he was killed, when the first tower fell. His camera and film were recovered, and those prints were made.

Outside the PATH (Light rail/Subway to New Jersey) station, on the fence surrounding the site, is an exhibit of photographs from September 11 and the recovery efforts. The photographs are incredible, from all different photographers.


The names of the photographers and explanations of each scene are displayed alongside the photos. I didn't make notes of their names. I'm hoping I can find a catalog of them online somewhere. Here's one of the photographs.

St. Paul's

This shows the tower of St. Paul's Church about to be engulfed by the debris cloud from the collapse of the first tower. I'm pretty sure this was taken from an office building to the east, looking west toward the church and the World Trade Center site. St. Paul's is directly across the street from the PATH station, and just a couple of blocks up the street from Trinity Church.

St. Paul's sustained heavy damage, but it survived, and it served as one of the centers for recovery efforts downtown. Its fence was covered with memorials for months. Right now it's housing the Threads Project, which collected threads, ribbons, and so on from all over the world and distributed it to weavers all over the world to create the works you see below.




One of the losses at St. Paul's was a large Sycamore from the cemetery. If the tree had not been there, the church would have sustained even greater damage from debris which felled the tree instead. The tree has been captured as a symbol of the day, by casting its root system as a sculpture in bronze. This sculpture is permanently placed in a courtyard outside Trinity Church. The sculpture is called "Trinity Root."


And so we've come full circle. From Trinity, to Ground Zero, to St. Paul's, and back again. We grieve the loss of a great tree, whose death saved others' lives, and celebrate it. We grieve the garden, and grieve through the garden. It's the weekend before five years after. I will be mowing the lawn, weeding, maybe sifting some compost, and preparing the garden to receive the bulbs which should arrive in a few weeks. I will do all these ordinary things. And when I return to work on Monday, I will look up, and turn my face to the hole in the sky, and remember again.

Related content

Flickr photo set
Grief & Gardening series