Questions to Ask When Looking For the Best Lawn Care Service

As the brown grass begins to show through the melting snow, you may be wondering  “What’s the best lawn care service near me?” We understand you want to find a local lawn care service that can transform that soggy brown grass into a beautiful, green turf that will be the envy of your neighbors. To do that, you need an experienced professional that can analyze your lawn and create a personalized treatment plan perfect for your situation. As you research companies, here is a list of questions you should ask to help you determine the best lawn care service.

When you compare other lawn services to Ryan Lawn & Tree, you’ll see all the qualities that set RYAN Pros apart from the rest!

Do I need a lawn care service?

While it’s possible to apply lawn care chemicals and other products on your own, hiring a lawn care company can offer expert recommendations and save you a ton of time. If your lawn has patches of dirt, dandelions and other weeds, or damage from insects or grubs, you could benefit from a lawn care service. Like a lawn doctor who does house calls, services like Ryan Lawn & Tree will visit your property, inspect your lawn and trees and make expert recommendations along with a price quote for free. When it’s time to apply fertilizer and other yard care products, you can count on the turf manager having the experience and expertise to do it correctly and safely.

How many applications are included with the recommended lawn care program?

Professional lawn care services should prescribe a regular lawn maintenance program that includes at least six separate applications implemented from early spring through winter. This series of applications will provide effective pest and weed control and lawn fertilizing that will allow your grass to grow green and flourish. Ryan Lawn & Tree’s Signature Lawn Care Program includes seven lawn applications:

• Early Spring Application – This first application includes just the right mix of lawn fertilizer to feed your lawn for up to 16 weeks and adds the first mix to prevent crabgrass.
• Late Spring Application – The second application that will attack early weeds like dandelions and prevent crabgrass.
• Summer Application – In this third application, our custom, slow-release fertilizer will keep your grass looking healthy all summer long.
• Grub Control – Applied at the same time as the summer application, this treatment is important for getting rid of white grubs that can damage your lawn.
• Late Summer Application – To control summer weeds like nutsedge, crabgrass, and more, this application is an important part of your yard maintenance program.
• Fall Application – This super important fertilizer application is applied at just the right time to help your lawn get green and begin recovering from the stress of a hot summer.
• Winterizer – The last application is applied in the late fall or early winter — the most important time of the year to fertilize your lawn to keep it greener longer and help it remain healthy in the spring.

Can an application be skipped?

If you’re set up on a six or seven application program of lawn maintenance services, many lawn care companies require you to fulfill that full agreement. At RYAN, we know life happens and our goal is to make your life easier and not burden you with bills. If the need to skip an application arises, we highly recommend consulting with your RYAN Pro for a complete understanding of the ramifications of skipping the service. This also gives your Ryan Pro an opportunity to provide other potential solutions to give you the best value within your program. Our Pros can tailor a lawn care program to fit your needs and goals with no contracts.

How much is lawn care service?

Costs vary between many full-service lawn care companies and depend on the number of applications prescribed and the size of your lawn. For an effective quote, the best lawn care companies will visit your property to inspect the needs of your lawn before providing a no-obligation quote. Local lawn care companies like Ryan Lawn & Tree will also often offer discounts for signing up for services before spring and for pre-paying for all of the applications up-front.

What do lawn care services do in the winter?

The majority of lawn care services that operate in the midwest cannot afford to keep their lawn and tree care employees during the winter months. However, at Ryan Lawn & Tree, we pride ourselves on being able to do just that. RYAN Pros all work full-time, year-round and are co-owners of our 100% employee-owned company. This benefits customers immensely as they are greeted in the spring by often the same clean-cut, professional lawn care service person who has a vested interest in keeping your lawn and landscape looking pristine. During the winter months, RYAN professionals receive ongoing training in the latest turf management techniques. Topics covered often include training and information on fertilizer application techniques, technical topics such as proper cultural practices, common insect and disease identification and control, and weed control and identification.

What additional services do you offer besides lawn care?

When contracting with a professional lawn care company, you want to make sure that the company can handle your other lawn, landscape and tree care needs. Maybe you have trouble with ash borers or another tree disease? Or perhaps you would like some help with flea and tick or mosquito control on your property? Maybe you need a tree removed or trimmed? It makes sense to work with a full-service lawn care company like Ryan Lawn & Tree that can handle all of these requests as the needs arise.

How do I communicate with my lawn care provider?

Oftentimes, lawn care companies contract with you and you never see your lawn care manager for the rest of the year. While you can elect to have your lawn treated when you’re not home, you want to make sure the local lawn care company you hire is accessible. Your RYAN lawn care pro will offer his or her direct cell phone number when you first meet, giving you direct access when you need it. Our professionals will always leave you a note and sign in the lawn when they have treated your lawn to let you know they were there and include any relevant instructions for you regarding that application. Ryan Lawn & Tree also has customer service representatives available by email and phone at the local offices for lawn care in Blue Springs, Overland Park, Branson, Kansas City, Tulsa, Springfield, St. Louis and Wichita. They can answer your questions during business hours and can be in immediate contact with your lawn care manager in case you have a concern about your lawn. Additionally, we offer an online Ask a Pro service where you can get responses to your lawn, landscape, tree and plant care questions usually within 24 hours. 

Can I cancel the service at any time?

You should only contract with a lawn care company that allows you to cancel that contract at any time. While it may take a full cycle of carefully applied lawn applications to get the results you want, highly recommended lawn care companies like Ryan Lawn & Tree will prove their worth and earn your business with every application. 

Are all lawn care professionals that may service my lawn appropriately licensed by the state to apply lawn care chemicals?

Lawn care chemicals and pest control products can post some risk if they aren’t applied by a licensed, trained professional. Be sure the company you hire employs experienced and educated professionals and that those are the actual staff people who will be working on your lawn. If label rates are not followed, personal protective equipment is misused or not used and follow-up instructions after an application are not given to you when they after they implement a treatment, a hazardous situation can develop. At Ryan Lawn & Tree, you can be confident that the full-time lawn care managers are licensed and certified in the location they operate — whether they are your local Kansas City, Wichita, Tulsa, Springfield or St. Louis lawn care professional.

Do you offer a guarantee?

You should find out if the local lawn care company you plan to hire offers any type of guarantee of their work. Will they reapply products if you’re not satisfied with the results from an application? At RYAN, our seven-step Signature Lawn Program is fully guaranteed, meaning that if any time between visits you notice problems with weeds, or something doesn’t look quite right, give us a call for a complimentary service call to address your concerns.

Do you offer online payment services?

With your busy life, you really need a lawn care company that offers the convenience of online billing and payment options. At Ryan Lawn & Tree, you can log on to your own private and secure online portal 24/7 to view your services, pay your bill, request an estimate and more. 

Hire the Best Local Lawn Care Company — Ryan Lawn & Tree

We hope this gives you some insight into hiring the best local lawn company near you. At Ryan Lawn & Tree, we are proud of our full-time, educated, professional employees and we welcome the opportunity to earn your business at any of our five Midwest locations including Kansas City, Springfield, St. Louis, Wichita and Tulsa. Request your free quote today on lawn care services or our many other professional services including tree care, pest control and irrigation installation. We look forward to serving you soon!

Lawn Care Service From the Pros

Hire a professional lawn care company to take care of your lawn care needs, and save yourself some time. Ryan Lawn & Tree has over 35 years of experience in lawn maintenance and offers our services throughout every season. Contact us today to find out more about our services and how we can help your lawn to thrive.