Frequently Asked Questions

Downtown Memphis is in USDA hardiness zone 8a, and much of the surrounding region is 7b. The climate is humid subtropical, with hot, humid summers and mild to chilly winters. For lawns, that places the area in the transition zone where both warm-season grasses like bermuda and cool-season grasses like tall fescue are planted.

Published national figures for residential hydroseeding run from about 7 cents up to 35 cents a square foot, varying with which guide you read, and most companies have a minimum job fee in the $300 to $500 range. Slopes, heavy prep and added topsoil raise the price. Each service page lists published ranges, and the quote we write after walking your yard is the figure you actually pay.

Not that we know of. Hydroseeding uses seed, mulch, fertilizer, water and a truck-mounted machine, so someone pays for it. What we do offer free is the site visit and written estimate, so you know the cost before deciding.

It depends on the job. Sod is instant and suits a small yard you need finished right away. Hydroseed costs much less per square foot, covers large and odd-shaped areas evenly, and holds better on slopes, which matters on loess soil that washes easily.

For bermuda or zoysia in sun, May through June when the soil is warm. For tall fescue in shade, late August to mid-October. Bare ground that cannot wait can be covered with a mulch-heavy mix or temporary grass and seeded for the permanent lawn later.

Grass usually shows in about 5 to 7 days under good conditions. Keep foot traffic off while it establishes, and plan the first mowing at about four to six weeks, when the blades reach roughly 4 inches.

Yes. We install silt fence, inlet protection, erosion control blankets and hydromulch on builder lots and commercial sites, and we come back to seed and stabilize the ground when it reaches final grade.

Once the grass is established, a regular mowing service and a fertilization and weed program will keep it thick. We handle the start: grading, seeding, overseeding and repair of bare or washed-out areas. After the first season, most homeowners hand the lawn to a routine maintenance service.

National guides publish a spread of roughly 7 to 35 cents per square foot, and a minimum job fee commonly falls in the $300 to $500 range. A typical new-home lot lands somewhere in the low thousands depending on size and prep. We put a written quote in your hands after seeing the yard.

Yes. Bermuda is a standard choice for sunny lawns here. It needs warm soil, so we schedule it from May into early summer.

While the weather is hot, plan on several short, light waterings daily through roughly the first three weeks, just enough that the mulch never dries out. As the grass fills in, water less often but more deeply.

Bermuda will not do well in heavy shade. We use tall fescue or a shade blend under trees and seed it in the early fall window so it can root before summer.

The wood fiber mulch carries a green dye so the crew can see even coverage while spraying. It fades over a few days as the grass starts to come up.

Federal rules require permit coverage when construction disturbs an acre or more, and also for a smaller lot that belongs to a bigger subdivision or development reaching that size. In Tennessee coverage is under the state Construction General Permit. Your engineer or the permitting agency can confirm what applies to your site.

The federal minimum is immediate stabilization once activity in an area halts and is not expected to restart within 14 days. Your permit and SWPPP may set more detailed requirements.

We can apply mulch and a temporary cover grass to hold the soil, but permanent warm-season grass should wait for late spring. Many projects use a temporary winter cover and a permanent seeding in May or June.

Yes. Commercial seeding can be scheduled through the site or general contractor, with each area seeded as it reaches final grade.

Site plans or seeding sheets, the acreage or areas to seed, any specified seed or mulch, the phasing, and a water source. A site walk usually answers the rest.

Hydromulch is sprayed with the seed and forms a mat that protects the surface on gentle to moderate slopes. A blanket is a stapled mat of straw or coir that holds up better on steeper slopes and where water flows across the surface.

Once it is thick, grass does a lot. The problem is the first months, before it fills in. A blanket or heavy mulch protects the soil until then.

Not with seed alone. Cracks, bulges, leaning trees or seeps mean deeper movement, which needs an engineer or a retaining structure. We can seed and stabilize the surface after that work.

Straw blankets are designed to break down after the grass has grown through them, usually within a season or so. Coir lasts longer and is used in channels and on steeper ground.

It can be on sunny banks you do not want to mow. Native grasses establish more slowly, so the bank still needs a blanket or heavy mulch for protection while they come in.

Often yes. Even when a state permit is not required, local grading or building permits commonly call for sediment controls, and a lot that is part of a subdivision falls under the larger plan. Check with your permitting office or ask us to look at your plans.

The bottom of the fabric goes in a trench and is backfilled and compacted, typically several inches deep per the plan or local standard. Fence laid on top of the ground lets water run underneath.

Common practice is to remove it when it builds up to roughly a third to half the fence height, and to check after every significant rain.

It should not. Silt fence is for spread-out sheet flow. Ditches and channels need check structures, blankets or other measures designed for concentrated flow.

When the area behind it is stabilized, usually with established vegetation, and your permit or inspector agrees. We can seed the site and remove the fence when it is ready.

Building codes generally call for the ground to fall away from the foundation for the first several feet, and your local code sets the exact figure. Beyond that, the yard needs a steady but gentle grade to a swale, street or drain.

Only if the good surface soil is gone. If the yard is mostly subsoil, clay-rich fill or debris, topsoil helps a lot. If there are a few inches of dark soil left, loosening and amending it is often enough.

We try not to. Silty soils packed while wet turn hard when they dry and crust over, which makes a poor seedbed. We schedule grading for workable conditions.

Yes, for lawn drainage: reshaping swales, trenching for buried downspout lines and small drainage cuts. Larger engineered systems and French drains are done by drainage contractors.

It depends on the area and depth. Spreading topsoil a few inches deep over a few thousand square feet adds up to dozens of cubic yards, which is why we measure on site before giving a number.

For tall fescue, late August through mid-October. For bermuda and zoysia repairs, late spring into early summer when the soil is warm.

On compacted silty soil, yes. Core aeration opens the surface so seed reaches soil and water soaks in instead of running off.

Some people overseed dormant bermuda with ryegrass for winter green, which is a cosmetic choice. Converting truly shaded areas to fescue is a different, permanent fix.

Usually shade and root competition. As trees grow, sun-loving bermuda fades out. A shade-tolerant fescue overseeded each fall usually holds much better.

Published ranges run about $0.07 to $0.25 per square foot depending on whether aeration is included. Your written estimate after a visit is the price.