Do you do your own yard upkeep?

[Ima saver]

We have plenty of weeds here too. My husband spends about $1000 a year on grass seed and fertilizer and our yard still does not look that good.

[th_tan]

We do it ourselves, takes a bit of time but we enjoy it. Gets me out of the house too.

[pearlieq]

I WISH I could pay someone to do my lawn. There doesn't seem to be anyone around here who does it. There are plenty of landscaping companies but no one who seems to mow lawns.

I'm going to keep my eye peeled this spring, though. We both HATE lawn work (actually DH hates lawn work, I hate the outdoors period.) and would love to have a service.

Needless to say if money was tight it would be one of the first things to go.

[txex86]

BTW, are the weeds in Frisco growing as much as they are across Lewisville Lake in Corinth? It's the worst I've seen it in years.

txex86 = University of Texas 1986 grad I suppose?

Yes, Gackle the weeds are REALLY bad in Frisco. It seems all of North Texas has had a "weed invasion." I put down weed pre-emergent in the fall and a few weeks ago and that has helped tremendously.

As for my moniker, yep 1986 UT grad. Hook' em.

[bjl584]

I do it all myself. I own 5 acres but most of it is wooded, so I don't need to bother with it at all. My actual yard is about 1/2 acre which I care for myself. Mowing, tree trimming, etc.

[Fizgig]

I do my own yardwork, but the majority of people in Houston hire a service. Right now it's pretty beautiful outside and I enjoy it, but admittedly in midsummer it's absolutely miserable out there, so I can understand why people would hire it out.

That said, I HATE ironing and all my button downs go to the cleaners. That's well worth the money to me.

[gackle]

I put down weed pre-emergent in the fall and a few weeks ago and that has helped tremendously.

I put down some Scott's a few weeks ago, but still go out on a daily basis and look for dandelions to pick so they don't spread their seeds.

As for my moniker, yep 1986 UT grad. Hook' em.

Ah, sorry to hear. Fightin' Texas Aggie class of '96 myself. My brother went to UT though. Basketball rivalry has been a lot more interesting the past couple of years with Billy Gillespie at the helm. Welcome to the boards.

[PRICEPLUS]

I used to do the lawn all by my lonesome. The leaves in the fallwould take forever and never seemed to end. We started with that service. eventually we just hired someone to do the lawn as it became more practical for me to earn money and do other things with my time.

[lgslgs]

We bought our landscaping crew for $550 and it costs about $200 per year to keep them. The crew (8 goats and one cow) keep 15 acres in nice trim - including mooooing the grass, trimming trees, eating weeds, and keeping paths clear. They also fertilize the soil nicely.

We have a lot less yardwork since we got the landscaping crew. There's still plenty for us to do, though - and we don't hire out any of the work.

Lynda

[Scanner]

I see a lot of justifying going on here. . .for a "Frugal Forum" and "Savings Advice" forum.

No, seriously, every expense is a judgement call as whether it is a luxury or a necessity. I would say, being that I am an able man, that having a lawn service is a luxury. . .so I do it myself. I was not particularly "green thumbed" when I started but it ain't exactly Rocket Science either.

You get on Scott's Year Round system (on the back of any bag - just follow directions). Keep it watered. Bag your grass. Aerate and dethatch every 3 years. Maybe put down Grub-X if you have dem dere grubs like we have (if you have moles, you probably have grubs). Edging is a P-I-T-A, I'll admit.

That's about it. While my lawn doesn't look "manicured", it is probably the top 20% of lawns in my neighborhood with only that effort.

I think we ARE getting to the point where housecleaning may have to be contracted out, maybe when the little one goes to school. We both will probably be working so much that the $100/week will be justified or at least a good deep cleaning 1x/month for maybe $150.00.

[Scanner]

BTW, with global warming and constant (over?)fertilization, our growing period in S. Jersey is from April to October, so not much shorter than yours.

What I think is a shame for the environment and maybe people at large is this:

We used to let our lawns go "brown" in PA where I grew up (my Dad still does) in July/August. There was no pressure to keep a "green lawn" year round.

When I moved to Joisey, wow - things are much different. There is a much greater sense of needing to keep up with Jonzez and neighborhood assn's and such.

I wish we could go back to the time where we all just let our lawns go brown in the summer - that's the natural state (dormant) they are supposed to be in during that time of the year. My father maybe mows the lawn once in August, just to cut down some weeds. What you see now is very unnatural.

Either that, or we should all use our lawns for something useful, like growing food.

[JanH]

We bought our landscaping crew for $550 and it costs about $200 per year to keep them. The crew (8 goats and one cow) keep 15 acres in nice trim - including mooooing the grass, trimming trees, eating weeds, and keeping paths clear. They also fertilize the soil nicely.

We have a lot less yardwork since we got the landscaping crew. There's still plenty for us to do, though - and we don't hire out any of the work.

Lynda

The way you put that was just so funny! Coming from the country, I can totally see this......

[Ima saver]

We are buying a new riding mower today. Grass, here I come.

[creditcardfree]

We do our own lawn care. My husband owned a lawn care business for awhile and was certified in pesticides...so he's a bit anal about our yard. We usually buy a 4 or 5 step program on sale at Ace at the beginning of spring.

The most important thing you can do for your lawn is water it. Most weeds thrive in drier conditions. We also spray for weeds two or three times a season with the weed killer that attaches to your hose.

[Aleta]

We normally do our own yard, but had someone do it when my husband was in hospital and afterward recovering from an operation. I enjoy weeding the gardens.