Lawn maintenance and landscaping are terms that are used quite interchangeably in the business. In many situations, landscaping businesses also provide lawn care or maintenance services. Nevertheless, there are businesses that specialize solely in lawn maintenance, while others specialize only in landscaping services. Knowing the important difference between the two can help you determine what type of service is required for your particular situation.
While both are essential to keep the aesthetic of your lawn and surrounding external areas in good condition, there are distinct differences in the requirements of each. In other words, you should concentrate on distinct areas to get the most out of each. Inadequate maintenance and care for your lawn and landscaping can result in plant loss, overgrowth, the spread of pests or disease, and difficult-to-manage trees and shrubs, among other problems.
Let’s get into the primary differences between lawn maintenance and landscaping.
Lawn Maintenance
Lawn maintenance is only necessary for lawns and gardens that have been established. It includes easy tasks that most homeowners prefer to complete on their own. However, landscaping businesses often provide these conventional practices as part of their whole service, in addition to their expertise.
Lawn maintenance is concerned with the overall health of your lawn, and services include anything from aeration and planting to weed removal and tree and shrub care and fertilization. Grass care prepares the ground for a lush green lawn, laying the foundation for a landscape that will be both functional and beautiful.
Lawn Maintenance Services
The following services or tasks are involved in lawn maintenance.
Lawn Mowing
Keeping your lawn mowed is a must, especially during the rainy season. However, it is necessary to keep a mowing schedule to guarantee that your grass is not trimmed too short or left to grow to an excessive length.
In addition to ensuring that your grass is kept at the proper length, edging is necessary to maintain the tough sections that a lawnmower may not be capable of reaching. Edging around walkways, landscape beds, and roads not only improves the appearance of your yard but also improves the health of your lawn.
Fertilizing
Your lawn, like humans, requires nutrients in order to thrive and maintain its well-being. A regular fertilization regimen that begins in the spring and finishes in the middle of October is the most effective thing to do to preserve your lawn as green, lush, and healthy all year.
Applying fertilizer at the proper time and in the right amount is critical. Too much or too little fertilizer can hurt the health of your lawn and causes far more harm than good.
Aeration
Nutrients and water can reach deeper into the ground by aerating the lawn. Aeration is a technique that eliminates some tiny cores from the lawn in order to remove thatch, loosen the ground, and allow more water and nutrients to reach the roots.
Weed Control
Weeding is vital in preventing unwanted plants from sweeping over your yard and destroying it. Weeding on a regular basis helps to keep undesired plants from spreading and protects your grass and trees from harm. It is critical to get rid of these weeds as soon as possible since their seeds have the ability to make their way back into the ground even after they have been removed from your lawn.
Dethatching
Essentially, dethatching is the removal of thatch from a lawn in order to prevent the spread of fungus in the garden.
Preventative fungicide applications can help maintain your lawn disease-free and flourishing. Fungicide treatments are effective in preventing and controlling a wide range of lawn diseases, including leaf spot, summer patch, and brown patch, among others.
Clean Ups
Cleaning up and disposing of fallen leaves, collected debris, and other little cleanup jobs are common in the spring and fall seasons.
Plant Care
Healthy trees and shrubs are just as critical to the aesthetic of your lawn as healthy grass. For pest control, insects, mites, and infections are the primary targets. The provision of fertilizer by lawn care businesses is also common. For larger trees and shrubs, a soil-injected liquid is frequently used, while granular material is used for shallow-rooted plants and ground coverings.
Lime Applications
In many regions of the country, fertilizing your lawn with lime is just as important as mowing your lawn. Without lime, lawn grasses may not be able to utilize soil minerals, particularly fertilizer nutrients. Lawn maintenance services will correct any variances in the PH of your soil, which should be approximately 7.0.
Landscaping
For those who are interested in creating a beautiful landscape, landscapers are your artisans. If you want your lawn to appear its best, you may want to consider landscaping services. It doesn’t involve going to the root of the problem, which could make your lawn look unkempt.
Landscape design, as opposed to lawn maintenance, entails the planning and implementation of flowerbeds, shrubs, and trees. You need to maintain your landscape after it’s been created and built so that it can grow to its full potential.
Landscaping Services
When it comes to landscaping, the following are some of the most important services.
Design
Landscapers frequently provide design services. This can be comprehended of as the exterior equivalent of interior design. They know which plants and trees are best suited to your area and how to arrange them best so that they thrive in harmony with each other. Even the design of walkways and lighting fixtures are parts of some landscaping.
Trimming and Pruning
As part of your landscaping, trimming and pruning shrubs and trees that are part of your design is critical. As a general rule, it’s best to hire a professional to handle this task rather than attempting it yourself.
The plants may be damaged, and their growth may be impeded as a result of over-pruning. A lack of trimming can cause your plants to grow out of control, resulting in the loss of the grass and other vegetation beneath them. Toward the end of winter or the beginning of spring is the best time for this.
Planting
Landscapers understand how to place fresh flora in a way that will allow it to thrive. This takes into account your location, soil type, and the needs of the specific plant.
Mulching
In order to maintain the charm and health of your plants, it is important to mulch your flower beds and borders regularly. Mulching contributes to the retention of moisture, which your plants want to thrive.
Know the Differences
In addition to the activities themselves, there are some significant distinctions in lawn maintenance and landscaping. These differences are listed below.
Cost
Keeping a lawn well-maintained is less expensive than investing in new landscaping. If you have a large yard, lawn maintenance will only cost you a few hundred dollars, but hiring a landscaper can cost you several thousand dollars.
Difficulty Level
It’s very hard for property owners to handle their landscaping tasks on their own unless they hire a landscaper. However, if you have some lawn care knowledge, you may do your own lawn maintenance without the help of a professional.
Impact on Property Value
Landscaping boosts the value of your property and attracts more rental prospects than lawn maintenance. Both can raise the resale value of your home, but landscaping does so far better.
Conclusion
You now have a much better knowledge of the key differences between lawn maintenance and landscaping. Both are critical to the health of any yard. In order to get the results you seek, you need to know exactly what you want before hiring a business to maintain your outdoor spaces.