Peter Jay Sharp Children's Glade

The Peter Jay Sharp Children's Glade was once an overgrown and underused area, but in 2007 the Conservancy's design team added grass glades, stone and tree trunk seating, and country paths to turn the area into a place for children to explore nature, arts and culture. Without formal fences and floors, a child's imagination is free to roam.

The Glade is the perfect "stage" for storytelling, music, dance and theater. A Clearing in the Forest, the Conservancy's popular program of free multicultural performances and family workshops, takes place here every summer.

A variety of native plantings dot the landscape, including violets, mayapples and woodland sunflowers. Dogwoods, tulip trees, pitch pines and chestnut oaks combine to provide an elegant shade canopy. Black raspberries, Alleghany blackberries and flame azaleas are among the shrubs that surround the intimate spaces.

The Children's Glade was made possible by a gift from the Peter Jay Sharp Foundation, and it stands as a testament to the Conservancy's vision of creating new, beautiful and interesting destinations from formerly underused and inaccessible areas of the Park.