A Tree Lover’s Guide to the Harlem Meer and North Woods

Does branching out to explore nature’s towering trees leaf you feeling oak-ceptional? Don’t miss out on one of New York City’s hot spots for amazing arboreal sights.

The North Woods, Central Park’s largest woodland, and the landscapes around the Harlem Meer are home to a collection of the City’s most showstopping trees—many of which are over 100 years old! In anticipation of the new center at the Harlem Meer, which will feature a green roof with various species of trees, we’re spotlighting some of the area’s longtime leafy residents.

The Central Park Conservancy’s tree care team cares for the Park’s over 18,000 trees. They are responsible for ensuring the health and beauty of 170-plus species of these complex and diverse plants. You could say they know a thing or two about Central Park’s trees, and they're thrilled to share some of their insider knowledge.

How many of these iconic trees can you spot in the Park’s Harlem landscapes? We promise, they’re even more breathtaking in person.

American Elm

Location: North of the 96th Street Transverse Road at the East 97th Street entrance

A classic example of the American elm, this tree provides a dazzling welcome to Central Park at East 97th Street. At approximately 120 to 150 years old, it stands nearly 95 feet tall, and its massive trunk is around 65 inches in diameter.

“It’s a very iconic American elm, although it's also unique in its own right. It has a huge, low crown and massive, low scaffold limbs,” Peter, from the Tree Care team, describes. “Its drooping vase aesthetic is very typical of an American elm form and branch structure.”

Once one of the most widely planted tree species in the United States, the American elm population has been decimated by a century of Dutch elm disease. But Central Park is home to one of the largest and last remaining collections of American elm trees in the world, and our expert Conservancy arborists diligently care for thousands of elm trees

London Plane

Location: Along the bridle path at the northeast corner of the Reservoir

One of the oldest trees in Central Park, this towering multi-stemmed London plane tree is over 150 years old and stands just over 95 feet tall. London planes are an iconic Central Park and New York City tree, with over 80,000 London planes making up around 10% of trees on the NYC Parks’ City Tree Map.

New Yorkers are likely familiar with this tree’s unique bark pattern. “London plane trees tend to be thicker at the bottom and a lot smoother and more consistent further up into the canopy. That furrowed bark at the bottom of the trunk creates this sort of camouflage effect: As the tree grows and puts on wood each year, that old bark is pushed out,” Peter explains.

Unlike the American elm, the London plane is a non-native hybrid species that didn’t exist prior to European colonization: a cross between the native sycamore and Asian plane tree engineered by humans to tolerate urban conditions.

Black Oak

Location: Near the entrance to the North Woods where the 102nd Street Cross Drive and the East Drive meet

Approximately 45 inches in diameter and 80 to 100 years old, this is a sizeable black oak tree. Though oak trees are common in Central Park, there are more red and pin oaks than black oaks.

“With different species in the same genus—especially those that are very similar—they will cross-hybridize naturally. So, red and black oaks do that often, and it can be hard to tell them apart,” Peter says. “A lot of people think that they’ve just coalesced into one tree. But that isn't entirely true. They cross-hybridize, but there are also distinct red and black oaks. This is an example of a distinct black oak.”

To help tell red and black oaks apart, Peter looks at the bark texture. Black oaks have a furrowed, rigid bark that has a chunky, squarish texture that remains consistent from the root flare into the finer branches of the canopy.

Red Oak

Location: Off the North Drive loop inside of the North Woods, across from the new center at the Harlem Meer

In comparison to the black oak’s bark, red oak bark often has long, vertical stripes. This species has rougher bark in the lower trunk, larger striations between the rougher patches as you look toward the canopy, and smoother bark toward the top.

“Where the bark smooths out, it almost looks like a watermelon rind. You can see those grayish silver streaks where the tree is stretching out and kind of putting on wood,” Peter describes.

At around 45 inches in trunk diameter, you can easily spot this large red oak from both inside the North Woods just before Huddlestone Arch or from the Drive.

Black Willow

Location: North Woods between the path and stream west of the Ravine

Black willows like wet areas and typically grow on shorelines. Because of this, you can find several big black willows along the Loch and the Ravine.

“This is a cool tree because it has some funky old features. In the natural areas of the Park [like the woodlands], we'll try to leave portions of a tree for habitat that we might not normally leave in landscaped areas. If we need to remove a tree in a woodland landscape near a path for safety reasons, we'll cut it back to what we refer to as a wildlife habitat,” Peter explains as he points out a downy woodpecker perched on the black willow.

On this tree, a half-broken branch has rooted itself into the ground, providing it with added structural support. To an untrained eye, this could look unintentional or unmanaged, but Conservancy arborists often strategically choose to leave broken branches. Not only does this approach create a richer environment for more wildlife to thrive in the Park’s woodlands, it contributes to the aesthetics of its natural areas. “The decisions that we make that look unintentional could be considered through the lens of a Japanese form of aesthetics called shibui,” Peter explains. Shibui celebrates simple, subtle, or unobtrusive beauty.

White Oak

Location: West side of the North Woods, southwest of Huddlestone Arch

Quercus genus, which all oaks fall under, is Central Park's second most common genus. (Elms are the most common, followed by oaks, then cherries.) The species gets its name from its lighter wood color compared to most other oaks, and they can grow to be from 50 to 60 feet tall.

“This one is a cool white oak. It's not super huge, but it has a lot of character, and it's probably very old. White oaks that grow in undisturbed areas like this have sort of an exponential potential for growth,” Peter says.

Many trees in the North Woods were lost or damaged during Hurricane Sandy, particularly near this white oak. The tree was likely shaded out for the first portion of its life and then exposed to more sunlight after Sandy, which Peter explains may be responsible for its unique lean. He also draws attention to its “nice root flare,” which provides it with higher mechanical stability and resilience during storms.

Tulip Tree

Location: West side of the North Woods at the bottom of the staircase that descends toward the West Drive

The tulip tree is one of the largest native tree species on the continent, and Peter estimates that this one stands around 120 feet tall. Typical of tulip trees, it has a consistent trunk taper. This specimen has an eye-catching branch growing at a 90-degree angle, resembling half of a goal post attached to its trunk.

“You don’t see angles like that in nature often,” Peter remarks. Tulip trees have softer and less dense wood than hard-wooded trees like elms or oaks. This makes them particularly susceptible to wind and storm damage and broken branches. “My guess at what caused it to grow at a 90-degree angle is the branch probably broke, and we pruned the stub. Most likely, a sprout assumed the dominant apical role of that branch and skyrocketed up toward the light.”

Tulip trees get their name from their spectacular yellow-orange flowers that resemble tulips and bloom in the early spring. Because many have been lost during recent storms, Peter says the Conservancy has planted more of this species (approximately 10) in the Park over the past two years.

Turkey Oak

Location: Along the southeastern edge of the Harlem Meer

This large turkey oak stands near two smaller turkey oaks growing side-by-side and leaning away from each other. Although they are non-native and relatively uncommon in North America, there are many turkey oaks in Central Park—particularly around the Reservoir. In fact, Peter had never seen one before working as an arborist in the Park.

This species gets its name from its leaf shape, which bears resemblance to a turkey’s foot. One of the turkey oak’s defining qualities is its chunky bark. As they mature, the bulbous burls can form along its trunk.

“The burls don’t indicate that there's something wrong with the tree. They're caused by rapid cell duplication or cellular replication. It's benign; it just creates interesting features, like on this tree,” Peter shares.

Pair of Bald Cypress

Location: Along the southeastern edge of the Harlem Meer

Just south of the trio of turkey oaks along the Harlem Meer, you’ll find towering twin bald cypress trees—two of the biggest cypress in the Park. In addition to their striking appearance, these hearty trees are tolerant of urban conditions, oversaturation, dry periods, and have even evolved to survive periods in standing water.

“They’re deciduous, so they lose their needles and put them back on—an interesting quality for a cone-bearing tree, which tends to be evergreen,” Peter shares.

This species thrives in swampy wetland areas and is prone to growing in groves. While wetlands are the least represented type of landscape in Central Park, the new center at the Harlem Meer project will increase wetland presence, as well as the plant and animal life this type of landscape can support. When bald cypress trees grow even closer to a shoreline than this pair of trees, they can grow underwater roots called “knees” that protrude from the water, provide structural support, and help the tree survive.