The lawn is crawling up your legs, the hedges have smothered the house and the weeds are your new perennials. That’s why you have scheduled your first professional lawn service.
But what should you expect? What’s going to get done? What precautions will they take for your property? How long will they be there? Sun Power Lawn Care wants to put you at ease with an insider’s guide to the professional lawn care process.
What to expect upon arrival
Expect your lawn service to park somewhere that’s not impeding driveways or mailboxes. That way they avoid being a hassle to you, your other services, or the neighbors.
Typically, it’s a two-person team arriving. One team member jumps into action, clearing your yard of potential hazards. They will secure hoses, cables, and irrigation equipment in a safe place while scanning the yard for pets and pesky debris.
The other team member brings a friendly smile to your front door to announce their arrival. They will let you know how long they expect to be there, typically 30min to an hour, and they will ask if there is anything they can do to make sure you get the most out of your experience.
This is a good time to express any of your lawn service concerns or any precautions the team should take.
A True Professional’s Process
Mowing
Expect most teams to tackle that knee grabbing grass first. As experts, they know exactly what kind of grass is gracing your yard and how best to take care of it. They set their lawnmowers to the UF/IFAS recommended height and start mowing your grass according to Green Industries Best Management Practices to get the lush green results we all want.
Edging/Weed eating
Once the grass is no longer a jungle, the team can start touching up roads, patios, and flower beds. These areas are neatly edged leaving your yard well defined.
Nothing escapes their well-trained eyes either. Tall grasses and weeds hiding around trampolines, shrub beds, or fences get wrangled as well. Weed eating around trees can be tricky, but a good team takes every precaution to avoid harming the bark which could potentially lead to the death of the tree.
Blowing
The aftermath of mowing, edging, and weed eating is now evident all over the yard. That means it’s time to break out the blower. Common crevices that clog with grass clippings are cleared out. Grasses are blown away from the house and garage so that they do not get under doorways.
Professionals know to blow away from drains because this practice is harmful as grass clippings add nitrogen to the waterways increasing algae blooms. However, due to the nitrogen, grass clippings are an excellent fertilizer, so all the debris is blown back onto the lawn to help your grass grow.
Grass clippings must be evenly distributed so there is no matting. Clumps of grass matting together will block sunlight from reaching your lawn which can kill anything beneath it. Frequent mowing is an easy way to prevent this. We’ve written an article to explain the benefits of regular mowing.
Pruning and Hedge Cutting
Now the team can move on to those hedges smothering your house. Fully equipped with pre-sharpened long and short hedge cutters, your unruly shrubs are smoothed out. Viburnum, Loropetalum, Holly, and Boxwood are hedges that regularly require cutting to keep their elegant shape.
Regular trimming gets the shrub foliage to thicken which fills in those unsightly spaces. The team will place trimmings in garbage bags and set them out by the road for city pick up. Most lawn companies will happily take trimmings with them per your request.
Weeding
The finishing touch for a professional lawn service is putting your shrub beds in the spotlight. Weeding serves weeds an eviction notice, so your desired plants no longer have to compete for water, sunlight, or nutrients. Weeding is the perfect time for the team to scan for vines that grow against the house and damage the paint or grow through your gutters.
Vines growing through your shrubs block out light and cause your shrubs to get thinner or even die out. They disrupt the beauty of your trees and make it easier for the wind to break their branches. They may even cause trees to fall. The team will be sure to remove all vines and weeds from shrub beds, the house, and trees.
Upon Completion
Both team members start looking for what might have been missed. A tour of the property lets them look at the lawn, check the gates, and blow off any out of place debris.
One team member places the lawn companies’ service card on your door once your property is neat and tidy. This card documents what was done, when it was done, and who did it in case you need a record or want to know who to personally thank for the great job.
The level of consideration taken for every aspect of your lawn defines a great lawn service. When you step back to survey your yard, you should rejoice in the level of detail and precision.
Here are some great resources to help your lawn looks its best:
Revealed: Mowing Frequency More Important than Previously Thought
Who Are The Best Gainesville Lawn And Landscaping Companies? (Reviews/Ratings)
The Pro Secret to a Perfect Yard: It’s Easier Than You Think
Want to know more about the professional lawn care process? We’re a lawn care and landscaping service in Gainesville, FL. We are happy to provide a free quote for lawn service and get you on the path to a lush lawn. You can reach us through our email, admin@sunpowerlawncare.com, or call us directly at (352) 507-5296. We look forward to helping or simply answering any questions you have about your lawn.
