Hiring a Professional vs DIY Lawn Care: 5 Things You Should Consider

Your lawn welcomes you outside with its thick, green appeal. It can even become the neighborhood standard for what a great lawn should look like. 

You know you want your lawn to look good, but there are quite a few services necessary to achieve these results. The ideal lawn appearance certainly doesn’t happen by chance. 

You might not know all of the specific services that lead to a desirable lawn. In fact, you might even think you could just stop at your local home improvement store and buy some DIY lawn care products – maybe fertilizers and weed control – and you’ll be good to go. 

Not so fast. While you may not be sure exactly what services your lawn needs, you certainly don’t want to see your grass become full of diseases or weeds that could have been avoided. You just want to know you’re doing the right thing and making the right choices for your lawn’s health. 

While you ponder what your lawn needs, let’s look at some of the pros and cons of DIY lawn care vs. professional lawn care in Northeast Ohio. 

DIY Lawn Care Things to Consider

You might think you can just pick up a bag of fertilizer from a hardware or home improvement store shelf and get to work on giving your lawn nutrients. 

But there’s more you need to know before you start. Here are some DIY lawn care pros and cons. 

1. DIY Lawn Care Must Follow the Proper Steps 

Educating yourself on the proper steps necessary for lawn fertilization takes a bit of time and energy, but you do get to learn a new set of skills. 

It starts with buying the right products for the task. Fertilizers typically include nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus, and the amounts of each are listed on the bag’s label. At your store, you’ll find different fertilizers with different mixes of each. By doing a soil test, you can gain insight into what your lawn needs and which mix might be best. 

If you also want to control weeds on your lawn, then you need to make another application, which can be granular or liquid. To battle weeds, first identify the weeds you’re fighting and then choose the right product to manage it. You also have to remember to apply these products at the correct time to ensure control. Some weeds are best battled before they emerge from the ground, while others are best controlled after they emerge. 

2. DIY Lawn Care Must Use the Right Equipment 

To apply granular fertilizer, you need a lawn spreader, and you need to calibrate it before every application. 

Then, while you apply fertilizer, you should use proper techniques, such as a steady walking speed and consistent passes across your lawn to ensure you don’t overapply products or apply them unevenly. Remember, with fertilizer, more is never better. 

3. DIY Lawn Care Requires Education

Learning DIY lawn care skills is not easy. 

It takes lawn care professionals years to master the skills and obtain the necessary licensing and certifications. Knowing Ohio’s state laws when it comes to proper lawn care applications is also important. 

4. DYI Lawn Care Gets You Outside, But You Must Dress Properly 

Performing DIY lawn care can get you outside to enjoy the sunshine and fresh air. 

Since you’ll be doing this in summer, you may be tempted to wear a t-shirt and shorts, but it’s more appropriate to wear long sleeves, long pants, and gloves when you’re doing DIY lawn care. 

5. DIY Lawn Care Doesn’t Save You Money

Many people choose to perform DIY lawn care services themselves because they think it will save them money. 

Unfortunately, the costs add up. First, you have to purchase the proper equipment and products to do the work. Then you have to be able to store them correctly so you don’t waste products that you just paid good money for. Then if you have to reapply products that you didn’t put down correctly the first time, you have to spend more money on new products. You also have to remember to maintain your equipment to ensure it operates smoothly. 

Finally, your time is something you shouldn’t take for granted since it’s a large part of your total costs. What would you pay yourself per hour? Your time performing DIY lawn care might be better spent at work, enjoying a hobby, or even spending time with family. 

Professional Lawn Care: Is it Worth the Cost?

On the fence about hiring a lawn service to take care of your grass? Then let’s review the value you may get from choosing professional lawn care. 

Lawn care is a science. It’s not just applying random products or making guesses.

Lawn care professionals do this work all day, every day. Your time, on the other hand, is limited. This means you might try to squeeze it in during a weekend or evening, but you might have some weather delays or life challenges. Then, before you know it, you’ve missed your application window. Then what do you do? Professional lawn care technicians have your lawn on a schedule, so this never gets missed. 

Lawn care professionals also use commercial-grade products – things you can’t find in home improvement stores. They are also trained to use these products properly. Better products combined with a licensed technician with better training will naturally give you better results.

Your Lawn Deserves Professional Care

Now that you understand the advantages and disadvantages of DIY lawn care vs. professional lawn care services, you can make a more confident choice. 

Embracing professional lawn care in Northeast Ohio means you are all-in for a proactive approach to caring for your lawn. This way, you also avoid any problems that can happen when you neglect your lawn’s needs. 

Still confused on what decision makes the most sense for you? Give Turf Pride a call. We want to help you make the most informed and best decision for you. 

Want to improve your lawn’s health and create thicker, greener lawn? Turf Pride can help. Get started today with a free quote. Together, we’ll customize a plan that gives you the most attractive lawn on the block.