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Commercial landscaping services
BrightView, TruGreen, Yellowstone Landscape
Home / All Jobs / Trades / First-Line Supervisors of Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Workers
First-Line Supervisors of Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Workers
These supervisors plan crews, check outdoor sites, and make sure landscaping work meets the customer’s standard before anyone leaves the property. The job is distinct because it mixes hands-on field oversight with scheduling, estimating, and complaint handling, so you have to balance plant care and crew management at the same time. The tradeoff is that you get real authority over the work, but you’re also the person responsible when weather, pests, or staffing problems throw off the plan.
Also known as Landscape SupervisorGrounds Maintenance SupervisorLawn Care SupervisorLandscape Crew SupervisorGrounds Crew Supervisor
Median Salary
$56,170
Mean $59,380
U.S. Workforce
~124K
23.2K openings per year
10-Year Growth
+2.3%
224.7K to 230K
Entry Education
High school diploma or equivalent
+ Less than 5 years experience
What This Role Looks Like in Practice
First-Line Supervisors of Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Workers sits in the Trades category. In practical terms, this role combines day-to-day execution, cross-team coordination, and consistent decision-making under real business constraints.
U.S. employment is currently about ~124K workers, with a median annual pay of $56,170 and roughly 23.2K openings each year. Based on BLS projections, total employment is expected to grow from 224.7 K in 2024 to 230K in 2034.
Most hiring paths start with Bachelor’s degree in horticulture, landscape management, or a related field, and employers typically expect less than 5 years of related experience. Many careers in this track begin around Landscape Crew Member and can progress toward Landscape Operations Manager. High-value skills usually include Worksite Inspection & Quality Control, Crew Scheduling & Dispatch, and Crew Leadership & Personnel Management, paired with soft skills such as Monitoring, Time Management, and Active Listening.
Core Responsibilities
- Assign crews to jobs and reshuffle the plan when weather, equipment, or staffing changes.
- Lead workers who mow, plant, prune, and maintain lawns, trees, shrubs, and outdoor spaces.
- Walk properties to check the condition of plants, soil, and finished work.
- Spot pest or disease problems in the landscape and arrange the right treatment.
Keep exploring: more Trades careers or browse all job titles.
A Day in the Life
01 Assign crews to jobs and reshuffle the plan when weather, equipment, or staffing changes.
02 Lead workers who mow, plant, prune, and maintain lawns, trees, shrubs, and outdoor spaces.
03 Walk properties to check the condition of plants, soil, and finished work.
04 Spot pest or disease problems in the landscape and arrange the right treatment.
05 Review completed jobs to make sure they match the contract, specifications, and quality standards.
06 Track job notes, labor and material costs, and handle customer complaints or questions.
Industries That Hire
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Golf courses and resorts
Troon, Invited, Marriott
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Municipal parks and recreation
New York City Parks, Chicago Park District, Los Angeles County Parks
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Property management and facilities
CBRE, Cushman & Wakefield, JLL
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Sports venues and campuses
Aramark, Sodexo, Compass Group
Pros and Cons
Advantages
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The pay is fairly solid for a hands-on supervisory role, with a median of $56,170 and a mean of $59,380.
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There are steady openings, with about 23.2K annual openings expected, so turnover and replacement hiring keep the job market active.
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You can move into leadership without a long training pipeline, since the typical entry point is a high school diploma or equivalent.
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The work changes from job to job, mixing scheduling, estimating, inspections, and crew supervision instead of repeating one task all day.
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You get to see the results of your work quickly when a property looks cleaner, healthier, and better maintained after your crew finishes.
Challenges
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Growth is only 2.3% through 2034, so the occupation is not expanding quickly.
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The pay ceiling is modest compared with many other management jobs, especially given the responsibility for crews, budgets, and customer complaints.
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Weather can upend the schedule at any time, which makes planning difficult and can turn a full day into a scramble.
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The job is still physically demanding because you spend a lot of time outdoors, walking sites, riding around properties, and dealing with equipment.
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Career advancement can be narrow unless you move into operations management, sales, or ownership, so some supervisors may hit a plateau after a few years.
Career Progression
Landscape Crew Member
0-2 years
$30K-$38K
Entry-level workers do the physical maintenance and learn how crews, equipment, and plant care work on real job sites.
Crew Lead
2-5 years
$38K-$48K
Crew leads coordinate small teams, solve day-to-day problems on site, and help keep work moving on schedule.
First-Line Supervisor of Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Workers THIS ROLE
4-8 years
$50K-$65K
Supervisors balance scheduling, quality checks, customer issues, and crew management while keeping projects on budget.
Landscape Operations Manager
8-15 years
$65K-$85K
Managers oversee multiple crews or sites, handle larger budgets, and are responsible for service quality across a broader territory.
Education Paths
Bachelor’s degree in horticulture, landscape management, or a related field
The largest share of workers in the distribution have a bachelor’s degree, at 32.32%, even though many employers will hire experienced workers from the field.
High school diploma or equivalent plus crew experience
BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry point, and 19.95% of workers in the distribution report that level.
Associate’s degree in horticulture, turf management, or a related area
An associate’s degree is a real alternative path and appears for 13.55% of workers in the distribution.
Post-secondary certificate in landscaping, horticulture, or turf care
A certificate can be enough to get started or move up, and post-secondary certificates account for 13.23% of workers in the distribution.
Key Skills
Technical
Worksite Inspection & Quality Control 80%
Crew Scheduling & Dispatch 80%
Crew Leadership & Personnel Management 78%
Job Cost Estimating & Budget Tracking 75%
Plant Health, Pest & Disease Identification 75%
Recordkeeping & Reporting Software 65%
Soft Skills
MonitoringTime ManagementActive ListeningManagement of Personnel ResourcesCoordinationSpeaking Job Outlook and Trends
+2.3%
Projected growth (2024-2034)
23.2K
Annual job openings
Employment is projected to rise from 224.7K to 230 K over the next decade, representing 2.3% growth. Around 23.2 K openings per year include both newly created roles and replacement hiring from turnover.
Remote availability is currently Rare. Demand remains strongest where employers need practical domain knowledge plus modern workflow and data skills.