Neighbors, I just wanted to encourage everyone to read Brian O'Neill's column discussing the good effects of our tree recycling efforts and to raise awareness that, as a direct result, there will be free mulch available for the next 3 Saturdays (see below for info). Highland Park was the top drop off spot for trees this year: way to go! https://www.post-gazette.com/opinion/brian-oneill/2019/03/31/Brian-O-Neill-P... "This is an odd week to be complaining about the city’s efforts, as it began offering free mulch <http://billpeduto.com/2019/03/27/christmas-tree-recycling-program-produces-21-tons-of-free-mulch/> to the city’s gardeners Saturday, the result of hauling away and grinding up more than 2,000 Christmas trees that the citizenry dropped off <https://www.post-gazette.com/opinion/brian-oneill/2019/01/24/Brian-O-Neill-The-new-Christmas-tree-recycling-program-is-paying-dividends/stories/201901240018> at 10 sites last winter. That diverted more than 21 tons from the landfill, where it would have been buried and created methane. So it’s great that the mulch might protect tomatoes and eradicate weeds instead. The city hopes it has enough mulch to offer it free to Pittsburgh residents the next three Saturday mornings at the Forestry Division <https://www.google.com/maps/place/City+of+Pittsburgh+Forestry+Division/@40.4718685,-79.91311,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x8834f40722603f2f:0xfd61a87da1f14af3!8m2!3d40.4718644!4d-79.910916>headquarters off Stanton Avenue in Highland Park. But there are are about 115,000 single-family homes in Pittsburgh. If even half of them had Christmas trees, that means about 95 percent of them were left at the curb last winter with the trash. Teresa Bradley, who became the city’s recycling supervisor only a couple of months before the tree-retrieval program began, acknowledges, “All we can do is try to chip away at these things.” She likes the suggestion of getting the word out next Christmas season about dropoff sites by contacting churches and tree vendors beforehand." Thanks for supporting the Girl Scout tree recycling program! Heather, Troop 52498 heather.conrad.photography.com