1 million daffodils will be planted around NYC to honor victims of 9/11

By Devin Gannon

August 11, 2021

Photos courtesy of New Yorkers for Parks

Daffodil bulbs will once again be planted across New York City this fall as part of a living memorial to the victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Led by open space advocacy group New Yorkers for Parks, the Daffodil Project launched in the spring after 9/11 and has continued every year since, with more than 8 million daffodil bulbs distributed for free and planted by volunteers. As the 20th anniversary of 9/11 approaches, the organization will hand out more than one million daffodil bulbs, double the amount from the year prior. The project’s expansion this year will also honor lives lost to the coronavirus pandemic.

The city’s largest volunteer program got its start after Dutch bulb supplier Hans van Waardenburg sent one million daffodil bulbs as a gift to the city following 9/11. What started out as 10,000 volunteers during the first planting season has now grown to about 50,000 participants. Every spring for the last two decades, daffodils planted by volunteers in the fall bloom in parks and public spaces across the five boroughs.

“The Daffodil Project represents communal healing and recovery, which has been needed now more than ever as our city emerges from another devastating crisis,” Adam Ganser, executive director of New Yorkers for Parks, said.

“This annual effort is an important memorial to those we’ve lost, and yet also reminds us of how we can grow and heal together. We’re proud of the Daffodil Project’s legacy and ongoing commitment to making our green open spaces more beautiful, accessible and meaningful to New Yorkers.”

Register to volunteer with the Daffodil Project here. Pick-up locations include Brookfield Park on Staten Island, Union Square in Manhattan, Far Rockway in Queens, Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, Macombs Dam Park in the Bronx, and Forest Park in Queens.

Photo courtesy of Michael De Feo / New Yorkers for Parks

To mark the 20th anniversary of the Daffodil Project, the group launched a new awareness campaign with designs from New York City artist Michael De Feo. In collaboration with New Yorkers for Parks, the new logo will be displayed on bus shelters across the city.

“It is an honor to work with the Daffodil Project to create an image that I hope will help bring awareness to the work that New Yorkers for Parks does to beautify our city,” De Feo said. “My work often reflects the cycle of life. The flower I’ve created is a tribute to lives lost and a celebration of the rebirth of the city after a period of darkness and tragedy.”

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