One of Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s “PlaNYC” initiatives is to plant one million new trees throughout the city – he’s even proclaimed April as “MillionTreesNYC Month.”
To further the goal, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation has partnered with the Bette Midler-supported New York Restoration Project (NYRP), French bank BNP Paribas and Bayside nurserymen Ron and Richard Keil, to keep Queens out front and the city on pace to meet the goal.
Keil Brothers Nursery and Garden Center in Bayside hosted the announcement of the “One in a Million” Tree Coupon Program on Wednesday, April 1.
From now until June 15 (the end of tree planting season, experts say) Keil Brothers, and 11 other nurseries in the other boroughs, will honor $20 discount coupons for the purchase of qualifying trees, one-inch caliber (diameter measured 36 inches from ground level) or larger.
BNP Paribas is also matching donations to the million trees program during April.
Ron Keil announced that Keil Brothers would match the coupon discount during the program – bringing the price of some trees down from $125 to $85.
Benepe also acknowledged the “great work” of the Alley Pond Environmental Center and thanked groups like the Friends of Oakland Lake – but he had special recognition for kids from two nearby schools, P.S. 31 and M.S. 158, for their enthusiasm and participation.
The fourth graders from the P.S. 31 Green and Gardening Clubs even cheered when Benepe jokingly remarked “as soon as we’re done here, you’re all going to work.”
He was only half-kidding.
During April, tree-planting programs include a 300-tree volunteer planting in Pomonock on Saturday, April 18, sponsored by NYRP and Jet Blue Airways, and a city-wide event that will plant 20,000 trees in parks in one day, on Saturday, April 25, through volunteer group New York Cares.
For more information, visit www.nyc.gov/parks, www.milliontrees.org, www.nyrp.org or call 3-1-1.
Keil Bros. back million-tree program
By Victor G. Mimoni
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