NY Times: Rossi on lawn roof at Lincoln Center

Rossi (second from left) accepts 'Excellence in IPM' award from NYSIPM Program staff on April 25.
Rossi (second from left) accepts 'Excellence in IPM' award from NYSIPM Program staff on April 25.

Associate professor and turf specialist Frank Rossi is featured in an April 28 article in the New York Times (New Art at Lincoln Center: Lawn Care) telling the story of the 7,203-square-foot lawn constructed on top of a restaurant on the north plaza.

The lawn was forced to close just two weeks after opening last June because of irrigation problems, but reopened a week later and stayed open until November.

“‘These are glitches you get on any project,’ said Frank S. Rossi, a turf grass scientist and associate professor in Cornell University’s horticulture department, who was Lincoln Center’s lawn guru and has been a consultant for the Yankees’ ballfields. ‘Ninety-five percent of the lawn is not differently managed than any lawn in the Hamptons or Scarsdale.’” The lawn is scheduled to reopen May 11.

The architects tested and selected a mix of tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass to stand up to the heavy traffic.

“Mr. Rossi said the grass was also selected because it can withstand the ‘heat island effect,’ caused by the surrounding concrete and glass, and requires less water, fertilizer and pesticide than regular lawns.

“‘If you pick the right grass from the start on your lawn, you inherently have to do less to it,’ he said. ‘So homeowners should take heed to the time and effort we took to getting the right grass. It all starts with getting the right grass.'”

Rossi recently received an Excellence in IPM award from the NYSIPM Program. Read more.

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