the Price of Regular Landscaping Service

Lawn care service: they reviewed our lawn to see what care was needed, and fertilized it, aerated it, seeded it, and otherwise treated it as needed.

This was a mixed bag, and it was partly my fault. The tech visited as scheduled, and at least to some extent customized the care to our lawn; after all, if there are bare patches, it's obvious that some seeding is needed. He (and it was always he) left a note each time saying what he saw, what he did, and what we needed to do to make it effective - and that's where it kind of broke down. We didn't really water our lawn enough and otherwise treat it in a manner that would help the treatments work. Also, the weather failed to cooperate.

I'd recommend several things to someone considering a lawn care service. First, shop around; we took the one that advertised most, and I think we'd have been better off to go with a local service that would have done more of the follow up care itself. Second, follow through; we didn't, and our embarrassing lawn is a testament to our laziness! Finally, read the contract. We decided not to continue this year, so we didn't bother to re-engage the service. It turns out that the contract automatically renews, so we had to cancel after a single wasted $40 service (not included in the total above). So, caveat emptor!