Book tip: Berlin Green Places

In one summer, William Niendorff photographed more than 80 of Berlin’s larger parks and green spaces, from former airfields to lakeside idylls. You might remember seeing his photos here at UPR or on his blog, Planting Art. Now hundreds of his images from Summer 2013 have come together in his new book, Berlin Green Places, which you can view in its entirety online. Enjoy!

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San Francisco: Urban gardens, tree art and “parklets”

The urban greening report from San Francisco continues! Last weekend on our walks around the Mission, we learned about two initiatives that are transforming the city’s streets and sidwalk. First, on Alabama Street at 24th in the Mission district, after eating terrific pan dulce at the La Victoria bakery, we admired a sidewalk-greening project in which residents have removed some cement on the mostly paved-over sidewalk area to create little urban gardens. A sign explained that fully paved sidewalks lead to poor drainage, while open spaces within the sidewalk are both pleasant and practical, absorbing rainwater.

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Talking trees in the Bronx! and other art in NYC parks

Photo courtesy Katie Holten on treemuseum.ning.com

Folks, I cannot tell you how excited I was to discover that a tree museum is opening June 21 along the Grand Concourse in the Bronx! 100 trees along the historic boulevard will each be linked to an audio excerpt (via a number you call on your phone) containing the voice of an individual talking about life in the Bronx.

This public art project was created by Katie Holten to celebrate the centennial of the Concourse, which she realized should incorporate the trees as much as the neighbors. I like that she pointed out that “the Concourse has always been tree-lined, even before it was paved.” in the New York Times article about this piece. Follow the link to the article for sample audio clips.

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