The city’s annual Christmas tree recycling program saw a major drop in evergreens compared to last year — and officials are blaming bad weather and treeflation.
“Mulchfest” saw at least 46,054 sweet-smelling trees put through the chipper, ground up and returned to eco-conscious New Yorkers to take home for their own gardens and plant sanctuaries.
But even though that’s a drop from the record 52,000 in 2025 it’s mulch ado about nothing, Parks Deputy Commissioner Mark Focht told The Post.
“We’re very pleased with the participation we got this year from the public,” Parks Deputy Commissioner Mark Focht told The Post.
“It’s really less about the numbers and it’s more about the experience for the public. It’s also about making sure that these trees don’t end up in a landfill. That they’re put back into productive use by creating mulch that we can use in parks or the public can use at their own street tree in front of their house or in their gardens or in their sock drawer to provide beautiful smelling potpourri.”
Last year’s 2025 haul set a record for the most recycled trees in a normal year.
The highest-ever stands at 58,000 in 2023 — a total the Parks Department said was only reached after the city struck a deal with vendors who failed to sell out in a year of high prices.
New Yorkers were faced with a similar situation this year, but costs didn’t quite reach the staggering $300 prices that they saw two seasons prior.
Although some sellers were hawking trees for an eye-popping $200, the average for the city was closer to $119, according to Gothamist.
The dreary weather during the final weekend of Mulchfest, the biggest of the season that features games and hot chocolate, might have also deterred some people from making the trip with the trees.
This year’s Mulchfest total does, however, beat out the 42,000 that were mulched two years ago in 2024.
“It’s really an incredible event. It’s one we look forward to, and my colleagues roll their eyes, but I keep saying it’s the best-smelling event we ever do because it truly is. And it’s just really fun,” said Focht.
“It’s great to see families and all the different ways that they bring their trees: in shopping carts, in parts, little kids carrying their Charlie Brown tree up. It’s a really, really nice event. And it touches on so many elements: it’s family-focused, it’s fun, it’s environmentally appropriate. It’s just an all-around really nice event.”
Yet again, Brooklyn took the crown for the borough that mulched the most trees.
Nearly 3,000 were chipped across Prospect Park — the very same park “Tree-cycling” was born in 1988, the Park Slope Civic Council-sponsored event that transformed into the Mulchfest celebrated today.
Marine Park in south Brooklyn came in No. 2 after churning 2,300 Christmas trees into plant fuel.
The highest-performing Mulchfest site, however, was Randall’s Island, where an incredible 9,000 trees were recycled — but Focht admitted that most were donated from vendors who didn’t see in time for the holidays.
The good news is that most disposed Christmas trees in the five boroughs do get recycled one way or the other, even if they don’t make it to a Mulchfest party.
The piles of evergreens kicked to the curb every year are collected by the Sanitation Department, which whittles all forms of trees, old plants and landscaping materials into compost.
And even those who missed this year’s Mulchfest can still take home some of the gold — there’s a large pile of mulch sitting at Marine Park that’s still up for grabs, Focht revealed.
