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Full Lawn Maintenance
Handing the whole lawn over is a perfectly reasonable decision and this site won’t argue with it. What’s worth knowing first is which four jobs almost never sit inside the contract — because that’s usually why one quote looks cheaper than another.
Advertising disclosure: calls are routed to an independent local provider. We’re paid a referral fee for the call. You pay the provider, never us.
The gist
Mowing, edging, blowing and usually a fertilization schedule are in. Aeration, overseeding, soil amendment and pest control are almost always extra. A quote that looks unusually low is frequently low because those four sit outside it, so compare quotes on what’s included rather than the number.
Almost always in
Mow, edge, blow, feed
Almost always extra
Aerate, overseed, amend, pest
Compare on
Scope, not price
Put in writing
Cutting height
What’s in and what isn’t
A quote that looks unusually low is often low because of the second group, not because the company is cheaper.
Almost always in
The weekly work
Mowing on a set interval, edging hard surfaces, blowing clippings off paths and drives. For a lawn already in reasonable condition this keeps it there.
Usually in
Feeding and broadleaf weeds
Four or five applications with weed control included. Worth asking whether it starts from a soil test or a schedule.
Almost always extra
The four
Core aeration, overseeding, soil amendment and insect control. None is unreasonable to charge for. All four are why two quotes differ.
Rarely discussed
Cleanups
Spring and autumn. Sometimes included, often quoted separately, occasionally assumed by one side and not the other.
What a standard contract covers
Mowing on a set interval, edging hard surfaces, blowing clippings off paths and drives, and in most cases a fertilization schedule of four or five applications with broadleaf weed control included. Some include spring and autumn cleanups; many quote those separately.
That covers the visible weekly work, and for a lawn in reasonable condition it’s enough to keep it there.
The four that usually aren’t
Core aeration. Separate, seasonal, and the one job where hiring is clearest on the merits.
Overseeding. Separate, and usually sold alongside aeration because they pair well.
Soil amendment. Lime, sulphur, gypsum, compost topdressing. Requires a soil test to justify, which most contracts don’t include, so it tends not to come up at all.
Pest control. Grubs, chinch bugs, sod webworm. Sometimes offered as an add-on, occasionally bundled, frequently not mentioned until something is dying.
None of that is dishonest. It becomes a problem when you compare a mowing-and-feeding quote against a full-programme quote as though they were the same product, and pick the cheaper one.
The clause worth insisting on
Cutting height, in inches, written into the agreement. Cool-season grass wants roughly three to four inches through summer, and route-based services tend to cut shorter because it lengthens the interval before the next visit.
A lawn scalped to two inches dries faster, grows more weeds because light reaches the soil, thins under stress, and then needs the overseeding and weed control that sit outside the contract. It is the single clause that decides whether the service improves the lawn or generates the work you subsequently pay for.
Interval, and what happens in a drought
The other clause worth settling. A fixed-cut contract has to deliver its cuts somewhere, which means a mower running over heat-dormant turf in August because the schedule says so. Ask what happens in drought — whether visits are skipped, whether you’re still charged, and who decides.
The honest version of either arrangement has an answer to that. Ask for it before you sign rather than in August.
Comparing two quotes honestly
On scope, not on the headline number.
Get the four extras priced
By everyone, even if you don’t buy them. It’s the only way to compare the same product.
Fix the cutting height
In inches, in the agreement. Scalping creates the overseeding and weed control that sit outside the contract.
Settle the drought question
Whether visits are skipped, whether you still pay, and who decides.
Check the mowing interval
Weekly through flush, longer in high summer. A fixed interval year-round means breaking the one-third rule in May.
Confirm bagging
Whether clippings are mulched or bagged, and whether bagging is a separate charge.
What’s in and what’s extra
The point where this changes
Slopes. Every riding mower has a maximum rated slope printed on the machine, and it is lower than most people assume — rollover is the serious injury category in lawn work. A bank above a retaining wall, a pond edge or a road is where this stops being about convenience.
Half an acre and up. An arithmetic point rather than a safety one: equipment, storage, fuel and maintenance stop making sense against a route price.
Anything requiring a restricted-use product. Rare on a home lawn. Ask which product and check the label.
Advertising disclosure: calls are routed to an independent local provider. We’re paid a referral fee for the call. You pay the provider, never us.
How to read what you’re being sold
Quoting
Prices the extras up front
Aeration, overseeding, amendment, insect control. Even if you don’t buy them.
Agreement
Writes the height in
In inches. It’s the clause that decides everything downstream.
Contingency
Answers the drought question
Skip or charge, and who decides.
What to settle before you sign
- Cutting height, in inches, written into the agreement
- Mowing interval, and what happens in a drought
- Which of the four extras you want quoted now rather than later
- Whether the fertilization schedule starts with a soil test
- Bagging or mulching clippings, and whether bagging is charged
Get the four extras priced up front even if you don’t buy them. It’s the only way to compare two quotes honestly.
Frequently asked
What does a lawn maintenance contract include?
Mowing, edging, blowing hard surfaces, and usually a fertilization schedule with broadleaf weed control. Cleanups are sometimes separate.
What’s usually not included in lawn care contracts?
Four things: core aeration, overseeding, soil amendment and insect control. A quote that looks unusually low is often low because those sit outside it.
How do I compare lawn care quotes fairly?
On scope, not price. Get the four common extras quoted by everyone even if you don’t buy them — otherwise you’re comparing different products.
What should I insist on in a lawn care agreement?
Cutting height in inches, the mowing interval, what happens in a drought, and whether bagging clippings is charged separately.
Comparing two quotes that look different?
They probably are different. Aeration, overseeding, soil amendment and insect control sit outside almost every contract, so ask for all four priced before you compare — and get the cutting height written in, because that clause decides whether the service improves the lawn or creates the work.
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