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Lawn Care & Maintenance in Houston, TX

Quick answer

Houston lawn care centers on warm-season grasses, mostly St. Augustine, with Bermuda and zoysia in sunnier yards. Mow at the right height, fertilize during active growth, water only when needed, and watch for chinch bugs and fungal disease. Anyone applying weed or insect control for hire must be licensed through the Texas Department of Agriculture.

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Houston's growing season is long. Warm-season grass can be actively growing for most of the year, which means more mowing, more weeds, and more chances for insects and disease. A good lawn program is built around your grass type, your soil, and the problems that show up most often in Gulf Coast lawns.

Know your grass first

Most Houston lawns are St. Augustine, which Texas A&M AgriLife describes as best adapted to Southeast Texas and the most shade tolerant of the warm-season turfgrasses. Bermuda and zoysia are also common, especially in sunny yards. Each has different mowing heights, fertilizer needs and weak points, so a lawn care company should ask what you have before quoting a program. For help choosing, see our guide to the best grass for Houston lawns.

What a lawn care program usually covers

  • Mowing. At the right height for the grass. St. Augustine is mowed taller than Bermuda. Cutting too low is one of the most common reasons a lawn thins out.
  • Fertilizing. Warm-season grasses are fed while actively growing, not in winter dormancy. A soil test from the Texas A&M AgriLife Soil, Water and Forage Testing Laboratory shows what the lawn actually needs.
  • Weed control. Pre-emergent and spot treatments timed to the weeds you have. A thick, healthy lawn is the best long-term weed control.
  • Insect and disease watch. Chinch bugs, grubs and sod webworms, and fungal problems such as large patch, gray leaf spot and take-all root rot are well-known issues in Houston-area St. Augustine. Harris County AgriLife publishes guides on several of them.
  • Aeration. Core aeration helps compacted clay take in water and air. It is done when the grass is actively growing so it can recover.
  • Irrigation checks. Watching for dry spots, broken heads and overwatering, which encourages disease in humid weather.

Common Houston lawn problems

  • Brown patches in summer. Could be chinch bugs, drought stress, or a sprinkler not reaching. A good technician checks before treating.
  • Circular patches in cool, wet weather. Often a fungal disease in St. Augustine, made worse by too much nitrogen and night watering in mild weather.
  • Thin grass under trees. Even St. Augustine needs several hours of sun a day. In deep shade, beds or groundcovers may be the better answer.
  • Fire ants. Common across the region. Ask how the company treats them and whether treatments are included or extra.

Licensing to ask about

Mowing and basic yard maintenance do not require a Texas state license. Anyone who applies pesticides, including weed killers and insect treatments, to lawns, trees or ornamentals for hire must be licensed through the Texas Department of Agriculture, either with a commercial applicator license or a Structural Pest Control Service license in the lawn and ornamental or weed control category. Fertilizer-only applications do not need that license. If your program includes weed or insect control, ask for the license number.

Questions to ask before you sign up

  • What is included in each visit, and how many visits are there per year?
  • Is the program built on a soil test?
  • Who holds the pesticide license, and will that person or someone they supervise do the work?
  • How do you handle watering rules during drought stages?
  • Can I cancel without a penalty?

Ready for a lawn program that fits your yard? Request a Houston-area lawn care company.

See how it works

How a sprinkler zone waters a lawn. Press the buttons to run each step and see what happens inside. Made with Colorfigures ·
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Frequently asked questions

Does a lawn care company need a license in Texas?

Mowing and fertilizer-only work do not need a state license. Applying pesticides, including herbicides, to lawns, trees or ornamentals for hire requires a license through the Texas Department of Agriculture.

Why does my St. Augustine have brown patches?

Common causes include chinch bugs in hot, dry weather, fungal diseases such as large patch in cooler, wet weather, and sprinkler coverage gaps. The fix depends on the cause, so have it diagnosed before treating.

How high should I mow St. Augustine in Houston?

St. Augustine is mowed taller than Bermuda or zoysia. Texas A&M AgriLife publications list recommended heights. In general, avoid removing more than about a third of the blade at one mowing.

Sources and further reading

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