General and Billing FAQs
- What are your service areas?
- What are your operating hours?
- What is your satisfaction guarantee?
- What kind of payments do you accept?
- Can you cancel a scheduled mowing visit if it is not needed?
Lawn Maintenance FAQs
- What do you include in your weekly lawn services?
- How tall do you cut your grass?
- What if my grass hasn’t been cut in a long time?
- Do you bag the grass clippings?
- What happens if a crew damages or cuts a shrub or perennial while mowing?
- How do you schedule fall cleanups?
- What does a “fall cleanup” entail?
Hardscape Construction FAQs
Organic Lawn Care FAQs
- Which application in our organic fertilizing program is most important?
- Why is the compost application so expensive?
- When compost is added, how long do I have to wait for a mow?
- What are the benefits of each application?
- Who is your organic programs targeted towards?
- Why should I aerate my lawn?
- What is dethatching?
- What is IPM?
- How do you get rid of grubs?
Seeding FAQs?
- When should I renovate?
- What can I do about my mossy lawn?
- How long will it take for my lawn to “fill in”?
- What type of seed do you use on your clients’ properties?
- What is an “endophyte enhanced” seed?
- What is your seeding guarantee?
As of 2022, we service Rhode Island including the areas highlighted on the map below.
What are your operating hours? Our Production Hours: Crews begin work at 7AM. Depending on weather, time of the year and scope of work, crews may be out to 6:30PM or later. Occasionally they may work on Saturday. We are closed on Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Veteran’s Day, and Thanksgiving. We are closed for a seasonal shutdown January and February. Our Office Hours are: Between March and December, the office is open Mon – Friday from 8:00AM to 3:30PM. In January and February we are on a seasonal shutdown and office hours are limited.
What is your satisfaction guarantee? 855-RILAWNS strives to be the best in the industry. We continue to grow because of referrals from our satisfied customers. We guarantee your complete satisfaction with our recurring services. If anything disappoints you, if we are made aware within 24 hours after a completed service, we promise to come back promptly to correct the issue at our expense without hesitation.
What kind of payments do you accept? To get any work scheduled, we require a Mastercard, Visa, or Discover card saved on file. All jobs over $1000 require a 50% downpayment for services to be scheduled. In certain, limited exceptions for specific kinds of projects we will accept check with certain conditions.
Can you cancel a scheduled mowing visit if it is not needed? If desired, certain recurring services may be skipped up to 4x per season with 48 hours notice. If less than 48 hours notice is given, we reserve the right to charge a $25 skip-visit fee to cover our costs for sending a crew to your property.
What do you include in your weekly lawn services? Our lawn service includes cutting the grass, trimming the edges, and blowing off the driveways and sidewalks.
How tall do you cut your grass? Grass is cut at 4″ from March to October and at 3″ from October until the last cut.
What if my grass hasn’t been cut in a long time? If the grass height in any area exceeds 6″ on any scheduled visit, the work will be performed on an hourly basis.
Do you bag the grass clippings? Generally, we encourage mulching the grass rather than bagging it. Mulching the grass returns essential nutrients back to the soil. Contrary to popular belief, mulching grass does not lead to built up thatch if it is cut regularly. However, upon your request and for a minimal fee we will bag the grass at your property.
What happens if a crew damages or cuts a shrub or perennial while mowing? Please make sure all shrubs, trees, or plantings are either flagged or inside of a garden bed. We cannot be responsible for plantings that are not clearly marked or growing in lawn areas without a garden bed around them. Please also make sure to have any debris (toys, dog waste, rocks, etc.) picked up from the lawn on your regular day of service. In the unlikely event damage to any person/property occurs due to unseen debris in the lawn, we cannot be held liable.
How do you schedule fall cleanups? Our fall cleanup is scheduled on a first come, first served basis. We have four time different time frames that we book until full. If your request is made into a slot that is full we will reschedule it for the closest open slot.
What does a “fall cleanup” entail? We offer both Spring and Fall lawn cleanups. In the Spring we will remove any leftover leaves and fallen branches, acorns, etc. from the property. In the Fall we can either do one or two visit cleanup which entails removing the majority of leaves, sticks, acorns, bark, and other organic materials from the lawn and beds.
How much does your design fee cost? For prospective customers, we offer two design services. We charge on an hourly basis for computer drawn, 3D, animated landscape plans. Plans can take from 2 hours to 8 hours depending on the extent of the additions or renovations at a rate of $75/hr. We also offer a cheaper alternative which provides landscapes, features, and plantings at a rate of $50/image.
Which application in our organic fertilizing program is most important? Compost is the most essential part of our fertilizing program. Composting is the topdressing of the lawn with organic material. Compost is rich in nutrients. Compost acts as a soil conditioner, a fertilizer, addition of vital humus or humic acids, and as a natural pesticide for soil. Compost is sustainable addition and unlike synthetic fertilizer it does not act like a drug that the lawn can’t survive with. Compost adds beneficial organisms that make lawns thicker, greener, and more resistant to drought and pest damage
Why is composting so expensive? Compost itself is expensive. Additionally, it is a labor intensive process to topdress a lawn. It may seem like an expensive transition from synthetics but because once a lawn is saturated with the beneficial organisms and nutrients it needs compost is no longer needed. Usually after 4-5 years a lawn becomes self sustainable.
When compost is added, how long do I have to wait for a mow? Usually we let compost sit for one or two weeks to settle and seap into the ground before a cut. This aids the compost in settling into the root zone and sub soil without being disturbed.
What are the benefits of each application? Corn gluten is a natural crabgrass preemergent. Topdressing with compost is a soil amendment. Milky spore is naturally occurring bacteria that attacks pests of turf. Slice seeding adds grass seed and aerating provides oxygen to the roots.
Who is your Organic programs targeted towards? Eventually we would like to have all our customers on our Organic programs. However, different people have different expectations for the lawn. Usually we recommend our organic program to clients who live by any watershed, salt marsh or oceanfront property. These customers usually have a balanced approach to their lawn understanding that not all weeds need to be eliminated. Our organic customers receive one core aeration and one slit seeding visit per season.
Why should I aerate my lawn? Regularly aerating your lawn is important for the overall health of your lawn for several reasons. First, keeping your lawn aerated will loosen the soil and reduce compaction. Soil naturally compacts over time and this can lead to a variety of problems including moss invasion. Since compacted soil is hard for grass roots to penetrate, more shallow growing organisms such as weeds can take over. When a lawn is aerated regularly, it allows water and other nutrients to more effectively reach the root system which results in a healthier lawn. Finally, aerating helps break down any built up thatch so helps prevent insect and other thatch related problems.
What is dethatching? When a grass blade dies, it turns into a brown mat at the base of your grass plant. That along with other organic matter that accumulates in it is called thatch. A little bit of thatch is beneficial to your lawn, retaining moisture, discouraging weed seeds from germinating and even adding nutrients back into the soil. When too much thatch accumulates it becomes a problem. Dethatching is cutting through the thatch layer and ripping out the debris by a machine called a dethatcher. We recommend dethatching once every two seasons.
What is IPM? IPM stands for Integrated Pest Management. It is an environmentally sensible approach that firstly involved setting your personal threshhold for lawn damage. When a problem occurs the pest is properly identified and according to its life cycle a control method is devised specific to it. IPM involves using preventative techniques.
How do you get rid of grubs? Grubs are an easy fix. There are many biological controls of grubs such as Milky Spore disease, wasps in the genus Tiphia, and nematodes that have different application dates for maximum results. Depending on your environment, the time of year you would like to apply controls and your personal preferences we can provide you with an IPM plan that gives you results within the season.
When should I renovate? If more than 70% of your lawn is damaged we usually recommend a renovation. This consists of spraying everything down and reseeding from scratch.
What can I do about my mossy lawn? Moss is a problem that is usually attributed to multiple causes. While there are certain products that kill moss our company tends to stay away from them. Instead, we like to focus on ways that bring in more light and air to the area. We also like to thoroughly aerate the soil and apply some fertilizer. The results usually begin two show in two months
How long will it take for my lawn to “fill in”? Lawns from seed take at least 2 weeks to germinate. Once germinated, the seedlings takes a couple months to turn the area ‘green’ under proper conditions. It takes a full season to two, on our Full Programs to develop into a mature lawn with thatch.
What type of seed do you use on your clients’ properties? It depends on your landscape. For sunny sites we prefer to use an endophyte enhanced mix consisting mostly of Perennial Ryegrass and Kentucky Bluegrass. For shadier sites we like to use a mix consisting mostly of fescue.
What is an “endophyte enhanced” seed? An endophyte seed is the seed of a variety of grass that has a fungus living inside of it. The relationship is symbiotic meaning that both organisms benefit each other. The fungus is transmitted to the next generation via seed. This in practical terms means that we provide you with a high quality, low maintenance, stress/drought tolerant, and sustainable lawn.
What is your seeding guarantee? If the lawn does not germinate within 30 days of application (weather permitting) due to product failure or workmanship, those portions of the lawn that have not germinated will be re-seeded one time at no charge under the following conditions: potential problems must be brought to our attention within 30 days of application. 855-RILAWNS is not responsible for weed competition or eradication. We are not responsible for acts of nature, vandalism, diseases or anything else beyond our control including drought, torrential rains or any other weather related conditions. This guarantee is only valid for lawns treated during the recommended seeding period from April 1st – June 15th and August 15th – October 15th. It is the responsibility of the customer to provide the proper care for their new lawn as required.