A well-built yard still needs looking after. Lawns need mowing every week through the growing season, beds need edging and mulch, shrubs need pruning, and every spring and fall there’s a cleanup that takes a homeowner whole weekends. Our seasonal contracts roll all of it into one flat monthly rate, so you know what the year costs and the yard simply gets done.
Because the same company builds stone, drainage and gardens, small problems like a heaved paver, a buried wall outlet or a downspout dumping onto the beds can be caught before they turn into a repair.
What’s included
Weekly mowing
Mowing, string trimming and edging along walks, beds and driveways, on a weekly schedule through the growing season. Mowing at the right height for the season helps a lawn shade out weeds and hold moisture through the dry stretches of a Connecticut summer.
Spring and fall cleanup
Spring cleanup clears leaves and winter debris, edges the beds, trims shrubs and hedges, and puts down fresh mulch properly. It’s also the time to cut back the grasses and perennials left standing for winter. Fall cleanup clears every leaf from the lawn and beds before they mat down and smother the grass over winter, on residential and commercial properties.
Mulching
Mulch keeps moisture in, keeps weeds down and makes a property look finished. We lay it 2 to 3 inches deep with a crisp re-cut bed edge, and we keep it off stems and trunks. Piled-up mulch volcanoes around trees hold moisture against the bark and invite rot and pests.
Fertilization
A fertilization program timed to the season, to keep the lawn thick and green. A thick lawn is the best defense against weeds. Programs can be bundled into a seasonal contract with mowing and cleanups.
A seasonal contract, in one rate
A contract can bundle any of the following into one flat monthly rate:
- Weekly mowing, trimming and edging
- Spring and fall cleanups
- Mulch
- Pruning of shrubs and hedges
- Fertilization
- Irrigation start-up in spring and blow-out in fall
You get a written price up front, and you deal with the same people all season. Calls and texts are returned the same day.
What a good spring looks like
A Connecticut winter leaves its mark: salt burn on shrubs along the driveway, winter burn on evergreens, beds washed out by snowmelt and lawns compacted by plows. A few things we pay attention to every spring:
- Don’t work wet soil. If a handful of clay stays in a sticky ball when squeezed, it’s too wet, and working it compacts it for the rest of the season.
- Flush salted beds with a thorough watering, and prune plow damage cleanly.
- Wait on winter-burned evergreens. Many recover once new growth arrives.
- Give late risers time. Some shrubs, like summersweet, look dead well into May.
Our spring checklist covers the rest, including patios, walls and lighting.
When a lawn needs more than mowing
Some lawns stay patchy no matter how well they’re mowed and fed, because the problem is underneath. Water sits on flat or compacted ground, clay won’t drain, or the yard slopes toward the house. Our backyard renovation started with grading, then new sod, bed edging and foundation plantings. If your lawn never dries out, start with drainage and grading.
Getting started
A foreman walks the property with you, looks at the lawn, beds and any problem areas, and talks through what you want looked after. You get a written proposal with your monthly rate, usually within 3 business days. We can also take on new planting and, in winter, snow and ice management, so one crew looks after the property all year.
