The Great Lawns of Manhattan

The Central Park Conservancy's turf care crew maintains 300 acres of Park lawns.

Lush lawns and pastoral landscapes are among Central Park's most celebrated features. These green expanses couldn't thrive without the Conservancy's expert lawn care and management, a program we continue to perfect after 30 years of maintaining the Park.

"Back in the early '80s before the Conservancy was established, nothing was done to nurture and maintain the grass," says Neil Calvanese, the Conservancy's vice president of operations. "Some of it was actually straw brown."

From the beginning, the Conservancy began restoring the Park's lawns by taking over maintenance of Sheep Meadow, successfully restoring the 15-acre pasture. The  Conservancy's success in Central Park is a major reason it has become a worldwide leader in managing urban park lawns.

Our six-person turf crew oversees nearly 300 acres of Park lawns enjoyed by sunbathers, picnickers, walkers and other recreation-seekers.

 The year-round effort to keep Central Park's world-famous lawns healthy includes:

• Mowing lawns when they require it, rather than on a schedule.
• Closely managing special events, including vehicle access, crowd location and event set-up, to minimize impact on the lawns.
• Monitoring soil conditions through our Soil & Water Lab to help us maintain the lawn's fertility.
• Renovating lawns in the fall, which includes aeration, over-seeding and using varieties of grass appropriate to each site.
• Rotating lawns that attract heavy use. The Conservancy uses a red flag system to let visitors know when to keep off grass to allow for growth.

You can help by properly disposing of your trash and refraining from using lawns marked "closed." These little steps go a long way in helping the Conservancy's turf crew keep the heart of Manhattan green and pristine. Be sure to enjoy the lawns this summer for sunbathing, a picnic or a ball game.