We check in on our year-long project #BLTrees, following the seasons through the trees around us with Marielle Anzelone, urban botanist and ecologist and the founder of NYC Wildflower Week. This month, James Lendemer, lichenologist at CUNY and the New York Botanical Garden and the co-author of Urban Lichens: A Field Guide for Northeastern North America (Yale University Press, 2021), and Miles Zhang, evolutionary biologist specializing in the study of parasitic wasps, talk about "Trees as Ecosystems" -- with fascinating stories about the tiny organisms that are living in and on our trees.

My pin oak in August is thirsty - leaves are drooping & brown tipped. With extremely hot summer temps & lack of rain, we're in a drought. Do your tree a favor - give it a drink. Water it low & slow - leave hose on ground at a gentle stream for 15 minutes 1x week or more #BLTrees https://t.co/XgwszjMgtK pic.twitter.com/0sjBcBe1vW

“My” London Plane tree got a trim two months ago. Remarkable to watch its stump at the cut sight heal quickly and perfectly. #BLtrees pic.twitter.com/U6mcNje4le

#bltrees August update, my oak tree is still in full midsummer glory, and offering some relief from the heat with its copious shade! ⁦@BrianLehrer⁩ ⁦@nycbotanist⁩ pic.twitter.com/6H3LedwX5u