New York Metropolitan Flora project

In 1990 the Brooklyn Botanic Garden embarked on the New York Metropolitan Flora project (NYMF), a multiyear effort to document the flora in all counties within a 50-mile radius of New York City, including all of Long Island, southeastern New York State, northern New Jersey and Fairfield County, Connecticut. Garden staff collect woody plant data and have created an online encyclopedia that shows plant data and maps of the New York metro region. For more on this project or to view the encyclopedia, visit https://www.bbg.org/collections/nymf

What should grow in a vacant lot?

Baltimore biologist Chris Swan says  “I have a PhD in biology, not human relations”. He is referring  to how neighbors of his vacant lot study plots react to his numerous wildflower seedings across West Baltimore. Chris is trying to understand which species do best on abandoned property soil types. You can read about more of this research at:
https://www.citylab.com/environment/2018/02/what-should-grow-in-a-vacant-lot/552671/