Get Quotes from Top Lawn Care Companies in Dallas, TX

How Long Have You Been in the Lawn Care Business in Dallas?

Hiring a new Dallas lawn care company can expose you to substandard service due to inexperience or lack of equipment, as well as a home improvement scam. When looking for a Dallas lawn care firm, it's crucial to evaluate its history. Lawn care providers with a good reputation are less likely to commit fraud. The Texas Attorney General's Office receives hundreds of scam allegations each year, including home renovation scams. Homeowners should only deal with reputable lawn care businesses.

Long-running lawn care firms are more experienced and better prepared to tackle your lawn concerns. These lawn care firms engage not only skilled and proven landscapers but also provide necessary work equipment. Generally, experienced landscapers are more conversant with grasses and garden plants native to Dallas than less experienced ones. With the right equipment, these professionals care for your plants more effectively. Natural grasses and garden plants common with Dallas homeowners include:

• Mexican plum
• Pavonia
• Texas sage
• Scarlet sage
• Winecup
• Prairie verbena
• Cedar sedge
• Golden groundsel
• Vines
• Bermuda grass.
• Buffalo grass
• Centipede grass
• St. Augustine grass
• Glossy abelia
• Dwarf adagio maiden grass
• Red yucca
• Liriope
• Wavy cloak fern
• Nandina
• Yellow lantana
• Dwarf yaupon holly
• Barberry

Before hiring a lawn care provider, you should ask how long they've been in business and verify their business history and reviews online via the BBB, Yelp, and Google Reviews.

Do You Hold Any Professional Qualifications Relevant to Lawn Care?

It is common for experienced lawn care providers to hold professional certifications in one or two fields within the landscape industry. Such qualifications assure clients of their proficiency and understanding of relevant landscape regulations. For example, lawn care contractors who apply restricted-use or state-limited-use pesticides as part of their service must hold a commercial pesticide applicator license issued by the Texas Department of Agriculture. Therefore, you may request evidence of professional qualifications from your preferred lawn care provider.

The Texas Department of Agriculture issues different categories of applicator licenses to interested persons. A commercial applicator license is only required by anyone applying pesticides on other people's property for a fee. The applicant's full name, social security number (or an affidavit of no social security number), and business address are required for this license application. The application for a commercial applicator's license can be submitted electronically or by mailing the completed commercial applicator's license form to the appropriate address listed on the form or to:

For online applications, applicants can pay the application fee with a credit/debit card or electronic check. For mail applications, applicants can pay with a check or money order made out to the "Texas Department of Agriculture." Applications are processed in the order they are received. Process time depends on staff availability and workload. After processing, candidates receive an Eligibility Letter to arrange examinations. Upon completion of the exam, the testing center scores each applicant and sends the results to the Texas Department of Agriculture. Note that only applicants with a 70% or higher are licensed. Commercial pesticide applicator licensing questions can be directed to 1-800-733-9267 or (512) 463-7622. Call (877) 542-2474 or (512) 463-747 to verify a professional's license with the Texas Department of Agriculture.

Many professional landscapers and lawn care contractors in Dallas get voluntary certifications in fields like arboriculture, organic farming, and other niches in addition to a commercial pesticide applicator license and any other category of license or registration related to lawn care or landscape services issued by the Texas Department of Agriculture. Such certifications are provided by organizations like:

• The International Society of Arboriculture
• The National Association of Landscape Professionals
• The Professional Grounds Management Society
• The Texas Nursery and Landscape Association

If a lawn care provider you're considering hiring makes any claims about their professional qualifications, you should always ask for proof and validate it with the relevant organization.

How Much Do You Charge Compared to Other Lawn Care Companies in the City?

When determining the cost of their services, Dallas lawn care contractors use the following factors:

• The location of the client's house within the city
• The size of the yard to be worked on
• The nature and type of lawn treatment the client needs
• The frequency of the required lawn care services
• The topography and current condition of the lawn
• The kind of equipment and tools required for the job
• The number of hands required for the service
• The time of the year

Dallas lawn care contractors will consider the issues mentioned above before deciding on a pricing model that is appropriate for the service they intend to provide. Dallas landscaping companies charge clients using one of several pricing models:

• Hourly Structure: Here, the service is charged per hour spent on the job. In Dallas, these rates can range between $15 - $70 per hour. However, homeowners should expect hourly rates to rise as the scope of the work expands.
• Per Square Foot: here, the lawn contractor bills a client for every square foot of lawn area that is worked on. Dallas lawn care contractors charge between $3 - $11 per square foot.
• Per Visit/Project: Here, the lawn care contractor charges a flat rate for each service or for a package of agreed-upon services that will be delivered over time. This rate varies depending on the work's nature and can range from $50 to $1,000 per visit/project.

It's important to get estimates from multiple local lawn care services before settling on one to handle your lawn maintenance and other landscaping needs. You can avoid dishonest lawn care contractors and possible scammers by shopping around and comparing quotes from a number of different companies that offer lawn care services.

Dallas lawn care contractors earn an average wage of $32,520 annually. The list below compares the average wages earned by these contractors per hour against the average hourly wages of lawn care contractors in other parts of Texas and also in other locations across the United States:

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

What Is Included in Your Lawn Care Program?

In order to keep a client's lawn in pristine condition at all times, a lawn care program will typically include a treatment and maintenance schedule.

Most Dallas lawn care businesses offer annual maintenance plans to keep their customers' lawns looking great year-round. These programs typically include fertilizing, aerating, soil testing and amendments, grub control, seeding, mowing, and dethatching the lawn. However, discussing what will be included in your lawn care program is always in your best interest before signing any contract with your preferred lawn care company. In addition, have a contract detailing what lawn care services will be provided before any work begins.

It is crucial to inquire about the lawn care programs a landscape company offers before coming to any agreement with them. Some dishonest lawn care companies are willing to make promises they will never keep to convince you to hire their services. Some others will try to offer you relatively inexpensive lawn care programs as a way to sign up for their services, despite knowing that you will eventually require more intensive service.

Generally, Dallas lawn care companies offer two main types of packages, namely:

• Standard Lawn Care Services: These are lawn care services that primarily focus on the aesthetics of their clients' lawns rather than the health of the soil, grasses, trees, shrubs, and other plants. Lawn mowing, edging, trimming, and grass and leaf blowing are all part of a typical lawn maintenance service.
• Full-Service Lawn Maintenance: Soil care, turf disease prevention, and fertilization are captured under full-service lawn maintenance. Besides these main lawn care tasks, full-service lawn care also offers:
  • Aeration and Lawn Overseeding
  • Mulch Installation
  • Tree Trimming and Pruning
  • Lawn Fertilization
  • Leaf Removal
  • Seasonal Pruning
  • Pre- and Post-Emergent Weed Control
  • Mowing, Edging, and Trimming
  • Lawn Disease Remediation

Cost estimates of lawn care services commonly included in Dallas lawn care programs are provided below:

Do You Provide Organic Lawn Care Services?

Soil fertility and water retention can be enhanced by using solely organic lawn care materials obtained from plants, animals, minerals, and other natural substances. The use of chemicals on a lawn is much more detrimental to the environment than organic lawn maintenance. Synthetic or chemical substances, such as pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides, are more likely to poison the soil and the plants, while organic substances are less likely to do so. This is paramount if you have kids or pets at home. You are protecting your family from dangerous pesticides and other pollutants by choosing organic lawn care.

Other merits of using organic lawn care include:

• It allows plants to retain water
• It assists the photosynthesis process
• It improves root growth
• It makes the soil lighter so that air can easily flow to plant roots
• It makes your soil healthier
• It makes your soil less vulnerable to pests and diseases
• It reduces soil and water pollution
• It saves you money in the long run
• There is zero risk of over-application

If you are interested in organic lawn care, ask your Dallas lawn care firms if they offer those services. In addition, you need to inquire about references from former customers who have used this service. Finally, get in touch with the references the lawn care company has provided so that you can hear firsthand about their level of knowledge and experience in organic lawn care from others who have really used their services.

Do You Offer a Warranty for Plants Installed?

One means to tell if the lawn care business you're considering hiring has the necessary skills and experience to complete your lawn care project is to look at the plant warranties they offer. If your lawn care provider doesn't offer any plant guarantee, it's likely because they aren't confident in the quality of their job or the quality of the plants they've chosen for your lawn. In light of this, you must always verify if the Dallas lawn care service you are considering employing provides plant warranties before making any final decisions.

Good Dallas lawn care and landscaping companies will guarantee their plant installations for a certain period. Guarantees of plant health and growth following installation on a customer's lawn and replacement of the plants if they fail to thrive within a given time frame, are standard components of such guarantees.

If you pay in full when the job is done, top-rated lawn care and landscaping companies in Dallas will guarantee your plants for a year from the date of installation. Lawn care businesses provide plant warranties, but their details and coverage can change. Consequently, before signing an agreement with your preferred lawn care business, it is crucial to clarify the terms and scope of plant warranties with them. Note that standard lawn care providers' plant warranties will not cover the following:

• Damage caused by lack of proper plant care and maintenance on the part of the client
• Damage caused by animals, including client's pets
• Damage caused by natural disasters and acts of vandalism

Additionally, many lawn care firms put restrictions in their plant warranties that must be met for the warranties to stay effective. This is because plants and flowers often require adequate care and maintenance. Examples include when to water, how often to mow, how high grass should be cut, and when and how much fertilizer to use.

Do You Carry the Necessary Insurance Policy for Lawn Care Companies in the City?

Insurance is optional for lawn care providers in Dallas. To protect their clients from being held liable for any accidents or damages that may occur on the job, however, professional lawn care businesses have active insurance coverage. Lawn care workers and landscapers are at risk of injury or death from the equipment, chemicals, and environmental factors they encounter on the job. Therefore it's important to hire a lawn care firm with the right insurance coverage, including general liability coverage and workers' compensation insurance. There are at least 100 deaths and an estimated 143,000 injuries per year from landscape and lawn care activities.

It is important for homeowners to verify that the lawn care professional they employ carries adequate insurance in the event that any accidents resulting in bodily injury or death occur on their property. Ensure you request to see the certificates of insurance from your lawn care contractor and call the insurance company listed to confirm the information is accurate.