Frequently asked questions.

Lawns to Impress covers mowing, edging, string trimming and blowing on a set weekly route across Decatur, IL. Seasonal add-ons like cleanups, aeration, overseeding and fertilizer rounds ride alongside it when your property needs them.

Lawn service usually means the visit itself, the mowing and trimming that keeps a property tidy. Lawn care leans agronomic: fertilizer, weed control, aeration, seeding, the work that changes what the grass is actually doing.

No. Lawn care keeps existing turf healthy and cut. Landscaping changes the property itself through beds, plantings, mulch, rock, patios, walls and grading. Many yards need both, which is why we run the two together.

Never remove more than a third of the blade in one cut. Taking more shocks the plant and thins the stand, so during fast spring growth the answer is mowing more often, not lower.

Growth sets the schedule, not the calendar. Weekly usually holds through a normal central IL summer, though a dry August can stretch it. We keep cool-season turf near 3 inches so roots stay shaded.

In slow growth stretches, yes. In May, a two-week gap usually means removing far more than a third of the blade, which leaves clumped clippings, a pale cut and turf that recovers slowly.

Wait until the ground firms up and the grass is actively growing, usually once soil temperatures hold near 50 degrees. Mowing saturated spring turf rips crowns and leaves ruts that stay visible all season.

Keep mowing while the grass grows, which around here often runs into November. The last cut should leave the lawn near 2 inches, short enough to resist snow mold without scalping the crowns.

A pre-emergent for crabgrass, timed to mid or late April here, before soil holds above 55 degrees. Heavy spring nitrogen comes later, since feeding too early pushes top growth at the expense of roots.

A late summer to early September feeding does most of the work, since that window builds roots for next year. After that, keep leaves cleared and take the final cut a little shorter.

Leaf removal from turf, beds and fence lines, cutting back spent perennials, a final low mow, and hauling the debris off site. Bed edges get redefined so the property looks deliberate through winter.

Once the canopy has dropped most of its leaves, usually late October into November in central IL. Waiting for every last leaf risks a snowfall that mats them down and traps moisture on the turf.

Late August into mid September. Soil is still warm, weed pressure is falling and cool-season seed has two months to root before frost. Spring work is possible but competes with crabgrass.

Loosen the surface, work in a little soil, seed with a matching cool-season blend and keep the top inch damp until germination. Fixing what caused the patch matters as much as the seed.

Kentucky bluegrass spreads by rhizomes and can close small gaps on its own. Ryegrass and tall fescue grow in bunches, so their bare spots stay bare until someone seeds or sods them.

Broadcasting seed onto thatch and standing grass wastes most of it. Seed needs contact with soil, so core aeration, verticutting or raking first is what turns a bag of seed into new plants.

Most contracts set a trigger depth, commonly 2 inches for drives and lower for commercial lots that stay open. Lawns to Impress clears on that trigger across Decatur, IL, then treats the ice that follows.

Spring and fall both work for planting, since cooler air and steady moisture reduce transplant stress. Hardscape like patios and walls can go in any month the ground is workable and not frozen.

Rarely. Old mulch breaks down into the soil and feeds it, so we usually fluff what is there and top it to a total depth of 3 inches. Piling deeper suffocates roots.