The seventh of January, and already the excitement of starting a new year had faded. All that seemed to remain of Christmas? A brittle, dried-up balsam tree in a corner of my living room. I took down the ornaments, unraveled the strings of lights and unhooked the star from the top. I pulled the cardboard storage boxes out of the closet and got to work. Yes, the holiday season was over, and I had a serious case of wintertime blues.
Bundled inand a knit wool hat with earflaps, I trudged down my stoop in heavy boots. The New York City Parks Department had been hosting a “Mulch-fest” for 10 years, and this year there was a site at historic Green-Wood Cemetery, just blocks away. I didn’t really feel like going out, but I loved the idea of mulch from my tree nourishing plantings around the city.
