Best fall foliage spots in New York City

Whether your children pick them up from the sidewalk on the way to school or plunge into a pile of them at a nearby park, brightly hued, crunchy leaves can provide hours of amusement for kids. Most trees in New York City will begin to turn this month, when the decrease in daylight hours causes them to stop producing chlorophyll, says Richard Simon, a captain for the Urban Park Rangers. At that point, he says, “the other colors in the leaves, like yellow and red, begin to emerge.” So tuck a heavy tome in your bag (the phone book works well) for preserving your offspring’s treasures. Then set out for one of the parks below.

Fort Greene Park Home to nearly 40 different species—including ginkgo, green ash and London plane—this former stomping ground of Walt Whitman’s is an ideal place for leaf lifting. Head to the visitors’ center and then follow the Tree Trail, a marked pathway with helpful descriptions of each species. Enter from Washington Park at Willoughby Ave, Fort Greene, Brooklyn (fortgreenepark.org).

Alley Pond Park The Tulip Tree Trail will lead you past one of NYC’s tallest such specimens, but Alley Pond Park is also dotted with sassafras trees, which are a very pretty peep: You’ll find three leaf shapes (oval, mitten, and three-pronged) that might have dropped from the exact same branch. They come in a spectrum of colors from yellow to deep red. Enter from Winchester Blvd at Grand Central Pkwy, Douglaston, Queens (alleypond.com).

Central Park At the end of October, go to the open meadow below Belvedere Castle. That’s where you’ll find red sailing down from the black tupelo trees. The Ramble is another place to play, especially during the first week of November, when the ginkgo trees seem to shed their leaves all at once. “It forms a carpet of gingko leaves that’s one of the best sights in Central Park,” says Neil Calvenese, vice president of operations. Midpark at 79th St (centralparknyc.org)

Prospect Park The sugar maples along the south shore of the lake are the first trees to change, to a brilliant orange. But if you want more of a woodsy feeling, head for the ravine trails, located between the Nethermead and the Long Meadow. Bonus: The trees—ash, tulip and others—are reflected in ponds, doubling the stunning spectacle. Enter from Prospect Park West at 3rd, 9th or 15th St, Brooklyn (prospectpark.org).

Clove Lakes Park Visit the northwest section of the green space, where you’ll find a 300-year-old, 107-foot-tall tulip tree, Staten Island’s largest living thing. The park is also home to white pine, maple, beech and oak trees. Enter from Victory Blvd at Clove Rd, Staten Island (nycgovparks.org).

The leaf list

Tulip tree
Its leaves (and spring blooms) look like the flower of a tulip bulb, hence the tree’s name.

Ginkgo tree
The leaves of this hardy tree resemble a fan or the webbed foot of a duck.

Sweet gum tree
Despite the name, this tree’s red, orange or purple star-shaped leaves aren’t edible.

Oak tree
The leaves are rich in tannins (polyphenols), which make them turn brown.

Maple tree
Inspiring the emblem of the Canadian flag, these leaves are usually yellow or red.

Ash tree
Each compound leaf is formed of several tiny leaflets, usually yellow or pinkish purple.

Want to do more than observe and collect? Dig a bit deeper with these tips (many from Courtney White, director of education at Wave Hill in the Bronx) for appreciating autumn’s arboreal adornment.

• Borrow a field guide from your library to identify the trees near your home, or download the Parks Department’s informational “Leaf Key” at nycgovparks.org. Once your kids know what they’re looking for, set up a scavenger hunt and ask them to find one leaf from each species on your block.

• If you’re in the park, group leaves by color and organize them into a spiral or circle. Then leave them for someone else to find.

• Bring leaves home, iron them between sheets of wax paper, and send them via snail mail to family and friends in other parts of the country. Ask them to send you samples of their foliage too!

• Have kids try this project: Place leaves on a piece of white paper, and lay a window screen on top. Dip an old toothbrush in a cup of diluted food coloring and lightly sweep the brush across the screen. When you lift the screen and the leaves, you’ll have silhouettes surrounded by awesome speckles—and a cleaner screen.

---

See more...

• Apple and pumpkin picking in the tristate area
• Articles from this issue

Time Out New York Kids / Issue 48 : Oct 1–31, 2009

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• Send to a friend
  [ X ]

  E-mail a friend

  • Your name*
    
  • Your email*
    
  • Recipient's name*
    
  • Recipient's email*
    
  • * Mandatory
  • Message*  character(s) left
    
  • View our privacy policy
  • 
• Print

Comments

1. Posted by ForestWanderer on Fri, Oct 02, 09, at 2:21pm

   Thanks so much for posting the picture guide for the leaves. The picture of the park with the yellow leaves is beautiful.

   Flag as inappropriate

Leave a comment

Name

E-mail (will not appear on site)

Your rating

Comment The comment you type in this box will appear on the site500 characters left

Submit View our privacy policy