Nothing beats having a lush, green lawn that you can be proud of. But you might be wondering what it really takes to achieve that. Some of the nicest lawns are those that are professionally maintained—but what are those lawn care companies actually using to achieve amazing results?
What do lawn care companies spray on lawns?
You might be asking these questions because you’re curious if you can just perform these services yourself. After all, you are aware that fertilizer and weed control products are available at the hardware store, so why can’t you just pick them up and do the work yourself? As long as you figure out what chemicals are used in lawn care, you may be assuming that you can do it all on your own and save some money.
We want to help answer your questions so that we can set you up for success. We have worked with many clients over the years who have tackled DIY lawn care only to end up frustrated and feeling as though they’d wasted their time and money.
First and foremost, it’s important to know that the chemicals you can purchase at a big box store for weed, pest, or disease control are not the same that a professional can use. The biggest difference is in the potency. A lawn care company has to be licensed to apply professional-grade products. 
The biggest difference is going to be in effectiveness. As a homeowner, you simply can’t get the same commercial-grade, high-quality products that a professional will have access to.
In terms of what chemicals are used in lawn care, a thorough lawn care program will include a combination of weed control, pest control, and even disease control products when they’re needed. It will also include lawn fertilization.
But it’s really not as simple as going out and buying one of each of these types of products. We’ll dive into how it’s much more complex than that.
When it comes to what chemicals are used in lawn care, it’s important to recognize that every lawn is different and can be dealing with different issues. It’s not just a matter of having the right products on hand. You also need to know when to apply them.
For example, lawn care technicians are trained to be able to spot the early signs of a lawn pest problem. They also know how to identify early signs of disease. Getting these types of lawn problems under control quickly is critical as they can spread and worsen, possibly even killing your lawn.
The trouble is, so often these lawn problems are hard to identify because their symptoms all resemble one another. It really does take a trained eye to know what’s going on and what products to apply to remedy the problem.
Even something as seemingly simple as weed control is a lot more complex than most people realize. There’s a misconception that with weed control, you can take a blanket approach with one product that will hit all weeds. But that’s not the case at all. A truly effective weed control program will use varied products, based upon exactly what weeds your lawn is struggling with.
Certain weeds, like Nutsedge as an example, will require specialty control products to knock them back. With so many aggressive weeds here in Tennessee and Northern Mississippi, you simply don’t want to mess around with products that aren’t going to get the control you need.
It’s also important to recognize that professional lawn care is so much more than just the chemicals that are used. Yes, professional-grade product is one key difference between professional lawn care vs. DIY efforts. However, there’s so much more involved.
For instance, it’s also professional-grade equipment that is truly top of the line. A professional is going to utilize much higher quality than anything available at a big box store.
Even take something that seems as basic as a spreader. The ones you can purchase at a big box store might cost $40. We’re investing in spreaders that are $500 or more but that deliver superior results. As professionals, we also know the proper calibration to get exactly the right amount of product down that we need to achieve the results that we desire. All of this makes a huge difference in your results.
As professionals, we’re also investing in proper training on best practices and we’re participating in continuing education so that as things change, we’re on top of them.
This is all more than the average homeowner would have time to do. After all, we’re in the lawn care business full-time and we’ve devoted our professional careers to it. We certainly don’t expect you to go out and have to get an agronomy degree to be able to care for your lawn!
While it might be tempting to go out and purchase the products and equipment that you need for DIY lawn care, the truth is, we’ve heard a lot of stories from folks who feel they wasted their time and money on trying to do these services themselves. Even if you purchase all of the right products and equipment, they’re not going to stack up to the professional-grade chemicals and equipment that a pro is using.
Plus, do you really want to invest the time? At the end of the day, a big reason why people end up choosing professional lawn care is that it gives them peace of mind that everything is being done the way it should—without them having to find the time to do it themselves.
You don’t have time for hassles, headaches, or subpar results just to try and save a few dollars on lawn care. Instead, by choosing to work with a professional, you can feel confident you’ve made a wise investment.
Wish you could stop worrying about wasting your time and money on DIY lawn care at your Memphis, TN or Northern Mississippi home? Talk to a lawn care expert, choose from 3 program options, and become the master of your lawn.
Image Source: Nutsedge
