• Lifestyle

The Trees of Fort Greene Park

Fort Greene Park is across the street from our home and it’s what I love the most about the neighborhood we live in. 

Living in NYC, the majority of time I’m surrounded by a mostly man-made environment – concrete sidewalks, glass buildings, metal subway trains. I find myself desiring a bit of nature often and it might not sound like much, but cutting through the park for five minutes on the way home everyday, where I can be surrounded by trees and a natural backdrop, makes a significant difference.

The Fort was originally built for the Revolutionary war and in 1847 it was designated as Brooklyn’s first park. The above monument marks the crypt underneath where over 11,500 Revolutionary War victims are buried.

The park has a wide variety of old-growth trees and what’s fascinating is actually following the ‘Fort Greene Tree Trail’ that labels the genus of the trees in the park for reference. Himalayan pines, white pines, oaks, European beeches and so so many more.

There’s one particular Magnolia tree that’s gigantic that greets you at the entrance of the park (it’s buds pictured above). In full bloom, it’s the prettiest sight at twilight when the white petals reflect what’s left of the setting sun light. Needless to say, I’m looking forward to seeing them bloom! … That is if we can get some sunny days any time soon! The park has so much more vitality in the summer with lush green foliage and lawns covering the scenery. These photos were snapped over the weekend when it was pretty gloomy but I felt like they captured the turning of the seasons well. I’ll give you a another look at the park at the peak of Spring.