Understanding 3 Common Things a Lawn Care Program WON'T Do For Your Lawn

When homeowners start to look into professional lawn care services, it’s not uncommon for them to be confused about what exactly that means (or what’s included).

We have found it’s fairly common here in North Mississippi for people to think that lawn care basics include things like mowing, watering, and sodding - but that’s not the case.

Basic lawn care plans usually include fertilization and weed control, plus add-ons like lawn insect control, disease control, and lawn aeration.

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• What’s Included in Lawn Care?
• Do Lawn Care Companies Also Mow?
• What Isn’t Included in Professional Lawn Care?
• Choosing the Best Lawn Care in New Albany, MS

In this article, we’ll explain some of the things that will NOT be part of a lawn care plan. It helps to understand what services a lawn care company will be responsible for and what you (as the homeowner) should handle.

At the end of the day, the best lawns are the result of a partnership between lawn care professionals and lawn owners.

What’s Included in Lawn Care?

Lawn care companies will handle things differently in terms of what’s included in their lawn care plans. But when talking about lawn care, we’re talking about the health of the lawn and services like fertilization and weed control, which help to maintain optimal health.

At Lawn & Pest Solutions, our lawn care program includes fertilization and weed control, with all other services available as add-ons for homeowners who wish to enhance their lawns. This would include services such as pest control, disease control, and lawn aeration.

Do Lawn Care Companies Also Mow?

No, a typical lawn care company won't also mow. This is typically handled by the homeowner or by a mowing service.

Where people tend to get confused is the fact that they think of “lawn care” as an all-encompassing term that includes any lawn maintenance services. But a company that offers professional lawn care services (a “lawn care company”) does not typically offer services like mowing.

A lawn care company will focus on fertilization and weed control, as well as offer add-ons such as pest control, disease control, and lawn aeration.

What Isn’t Included in Professional Lawn Care?

Let’s specifically talk about the things generally NOT included in lawn care plans.

1: Mowing & Trimming

Lawn mowing is one of those lawn maintenance tasks that falls on the homeowner. Whether they handle it themselves or hire a mowing service is up to them.

While a lawn care company that offers services like fertilization and weed control doesn’t typically offer mowing, that doesn’t mean that it’s not vitally important to the health of your lawn.

At Lawn & Pest Solutions, we do like to educate homeowners on the importance of proper mowing. Mowing mistakes, such as cutting the lawn too short or using a dull blade, can negatively impact the overall health of your lawn. When errors like these are made, it can cause the lawn to turn yellow.

Lawn care companies are often mistakenly blamed for lawn aesthetic issues that were actually caused by mowing.

Unfortunately, even if you hire a professional mowing service, it doesn’t mean that proper mowing practices are always followed. Sometimes, even mowing services have been known to cut a lawn too short.

The key is to cut the lawn to the recommended mowing height for your grass type. That is going to give you the best results. A key reason for this is the photosynthesis process. When you cut the grass blades too short, you can disrupt the photosynthesis process that is responsible for a green and healthy lawn.

Trimming or edging is often where things go most awry when cutting the lawn. You want to be especially careful not to scalp the edges, as these areas tend to be the common hot spots for crabgrass to creep in.

Any area lined with hardscaping tends to heat up quickly and make it challenging for grass to grow. Scalping these areas can make that problem even worse.

2: Watering the Lawn

Watering (or irrigation) is another lawn task that is not typically part of any lawn care plans. While you might choose to work with an irrigation company (if you have an irrigation system), many homeowners handle watering themselves.

This is another lawn care task that has a major impact on your overall lawn care results. If you fail to supply your lawn with ample water, it’s going to struggle…particularly during periods of drought. This might show up as the lawn turning yellow, brown, or even dying in areas.

A mature and healthy lawn typically needs around one inch of water per week. Sometimes that is supplied by Mother Nature. But when it is not, you will need to supplement with additional water.

One way to determine the amount of water supplied by rainfall is to use a rain gauge. This is a simple measuring device that can be purchased to keep track of rainfall.

3: Leveling, Grading or Sod

Lawn installation services are not typically part of the services offered by a lawn care company. Generally, you’d hire a professional sod service or a landscaping company for these needs.

That being said, once your sod is installed, investing in ongoing lawn care will help maintain the long-term health and integrity of your sod. This is where lawn care plans become so valuable. Sod is no small investment, and you want to maintain it for many years to come.

Choosing the Best Lawn Care in New Albany, MS

At the end of the day, there are numerous options available when it comes to hiring professional lawn care services. You’ll be able to find many lawn care plans that cover the services that you need.

But there is more to it than that. You also want to find a company that is going to treat you right.

That means doing your due diligence on the front end and choosing a company you can trust. You don’t want to have to make phone calls that go unanswered or work with a revolving door of technicians. You simply want to find a lawn care partner that you can trust. You deserve this much when you are paying for their services.

At Lawn & Pest Solutions, we’re here to help. We understand that people often have a lot of questions about lawn care services, and we’re available to answer them. We’ll also provide advice and guidance on the services that we don’t handle (like watering and mowing, being two big ones) so that you can ensure these are done right.

We know that the best lawns are built on a strong partnership between us and you!

When you make a smart, well-researched choice, you build a long-term relationship with a lawn care provider in North Mississippi and finally get the lawn…and the relaxation…that you deserve.

Want to improve your lawn’s health and create a thicker, greener lawn? Lawn & Pest Solutions can help you with lawn care in North Mississippi. Get started today with a free quote. Together, we’ll customize a plan that gives you the most attractive lawn on the block.