DEC’s Colonel William F. Fox Memorial Saratoga Tree Nursery needs your help collecting tree fruits and cones—and will pay you by the bushel to get out into the forest and harvest them! Help contribute to the more than 1.2 million seedlings grown every year by participating in the Tree Nursery’s fruit & cone collection program. The seedlings grown here are planted across New York State for conservation projects and will help NYS reach the goal of planting 25 million trees by 2033! The Tree Nursery is expected to more than triple their annual production over the next 3 years to as many as 6 million seedlings!

By collecting seeds from trees grown in New York State, the Tree Nursery can ensure that seedlings are well suited to the growing conditions of our ecoregions. With the help of community members, DEC can increase the genetic variety within a species by sourcing seeds from different locations across the state. This can improve our forests’ resilience against climate change, pests and diseases, and environmental stressors.

Priority Tree Fruits and Cones Species to Harvest in 2026

Conifer Species Needed

Foresters at the Tree Nursery note that many of New York’s native conifers have grown a bumper crop, meaning there is an exceptionally large number of cones to harvest this year. The Tree Nursery asks foragers to prioritize collecting conifer cones including:

  • Pitch pine
  • Red pine
  • White pine
  • Red Spruce
  • White spruce

Hardwood Species Needed

There are several hardwood (leafy tree) species that are in high demand during the Tree Nursery’s annual Spring Seedling Sale. Foragers should prioritize collecting fruits from:

  • Paper birch
  • Sweet birch
  • Black cherry
  • Sugar maple
  • Burr oak
  • Chestnut oak
  • Red oak
  • White oak
  • American sycamore
  • Black walnut

Shrub Species Needed

Fruits from the following shrub species are needed:

  • Arrowwood
  • Elderberry
  • Northern bayberry
  • Buttonbush
  • Nannyberry
  • American plum
  • Beach plum
  • Swamp rose
  • Virginia rose
  • Witch-hazel

What to Know Before Harvesting

  • Contact the Tree Nursery before you start collecting; the Tree Nursery needs a certain number of cones and fruits from specific tree species.
  • Fruit and cones should be collected from live or freshly cut trees, starting from when they are mature or ripe until they begin to open (for cones).
  • Be sure to get permission from the landowner before you harvest.
  • Prices per bushel vary depending on species.
  • All fruit and cones must be received at the Tree Nursery by November 15.