Most of what makes a lawn service visit go well happens before the truck pulls in. A few minutes on the customer's side, once at the start and then a couple of minutes each week, means we can do the whole property properly instead of working around things. Here is what helps, from the crew's side of it.
Once, at the start
Walk it with us
The first visit should include a walk around the property with someone who knows it. We want to see the property lines, the septic drain field, the well head, the irrigation heads and valve boxes, the buried dog fence wire, the low spot that stays wet, the young trees, the bed the dog digs in, and anything else hidden in the grass. Ten minutes of that saves a damaged well head or a cut dog fence. Our septic drain field post explains why that one matters most.
Tell us what you want
Height preference, whether you want clippings bagged or left, whether the back acre gets mown or bush hogged, which beds are included, whether a neighbor's strip is yours. And what you do not want touched: the wildflower area, the vegetable garden, the new sod, the plants your mother put in. We build the scope from that, and a scope in writing is what keeps every visit consistent.
Access
Gate codes, a key to the padlock, where to park, which day works. If the gate has to be unlocked by you on the day, tell us what happens if it is not.
Every visit
- Pick up. Hoses, toys, dog bones, extension cords, the sprinkler on the end of the hose, tools left out. A mower blade does not sort them from grass. A hose in the lawn is the most common thing we hit.
- Dogs inside or contained. For their safety and the crew's, and so the gate can stay open while we work. And a quick pick-up of the yard if the dog has been out; the crew will thank you.
- Cars off the lawn and off the strip along the drive. We cannot mow under a vehicle and we do not blow grass onto a clean car.
- Furniture and grills either moved or left where we can work around them consistently. Tell us which.
- Irrigation off on the morning of the visit. Mowing wet grass makes a worse cut and clogs the deck; our wet grass post covers why. Running the sprinklers the night before the crew comes is the single easiest thing to fix.
- Anything new flagged: a new sprinkler head, a new plant, a fresh seeded area, a spot where you buried a pet. A stake with a piece of tape is enough.
What we do on our side
We arrive when we said, or we tell you if the weather has moved the day. We blow the equipment off between properties so we are not carrying one yard's weeds and sandspurs to the next. We mow at the height set for your grass, not the lowest setting, and we vary the pattern so the same ruts do not form; see our post on mowing patterns. We trim, edge, blow the drive and walks clean, close the gate, and note anything we saw that you should know about.
Rain days
A Big Bend summer means some visits move. Saturated ground ruts under a mower and wet grass cuts badly. When a day is lost to rain we either come the next dry day or fold that visit into the next scheduled one, and we tell you which. What we do not do is skip a mowing silently. If the lawn is getting ahead of the schedule after a wet stretch, we may take it down in two cuts a few days apart rather than scalping it in one.
Feedback
If something was missed, or cut wrong, or you want a change, tell us that week. A note, a text, a photo. It gets fixed on the next visit and it goes in the scope so it stays fixed. Silence means we assume it is right, and a complaint three months later is harder to act on than one three days later.
FAQ
Do I need to be home?
No, as long as we can get in and the yard is ready. Most of our customers are at work when we come.
What if I forget to move something?
We work around it and mow that spot next time, or move it if it is light and safe to move. A hose we will pick up; a car we will not.
Can you skip a visit when I am on vacation?
Better not to. A lawn that skips two weeks in July is the one that gets scalped catching up. Leave the schedule running and the house looks occupied.
What is on the standard visit?
Mowing, trimming, edging and blowing off the hard surfaces. The rest is on the services page.
If you want a crew that shows up, does the whole yard and tells you what it saw, get in touch and we'll walk the property with you. We serve homes across Monticello, Lloyd and the rest of Jefferson County.