Frequently Asked Questions

HomeGuide's size chart shows about $500 to $700 at 2,000 square feet and $1,000 to $1,750 at the 5,000 square foot mark, so a 3,000 square foot yard falls somewhere in that gap. HomeGuide and LawnStarter both note that crews usually set a floor of $300 to $500 for small jobs. Grading, compost or topsoil add to it. We measure the lawn and give you a written figure before any work starts.

On flat, well-prepared sand it usually will not, because the sand takes water fast and the tackifier holds the fibers together once the slurry has set. The trouble spots are slopes, pond banks and swales, where storm runoff concentrates. August averages more than 9 inches of rain here, so on those areas we use heavier mulch rates, bonded fiber matrix or blankets, and we check them after big storms.

Bahiagrass can be started almost any time of year here, but it grows fastest in warm weather. Late spring and the wet season (April through September) give the quickest cover, with rain doing much of the watering from June on. Fall and winter seedings work too, but they fill in more slowly, and they need irrigation through the dry months.

Yes. You wait several weeks for a full lawn, where sod is finished on day one. Bahiagrass seed is slow to germinate and needs steady moisture, which means irrigation in the dry spring. Seed is also not an option for St. Augustinegrass, which has to be sodded or plugged. If you need a lawn ready for a closing next week, sod is the better choice.

Not with nitrogen or phosphorus. Sarasota County bans those from June 1 through September 30. A new seeding should not be fertilized for its first 30 to 60 days anyway, according to UF/IFAS, so a summer lawn loses very little. We can use an iron and micronutrient product for color if needed and schedule the first real feeding for October.

Yes, and that pattern is normal on flatwoods sand, where the water table rises close to the surface in the wet months and drops away in the dry ones. We shape the yard so runoff drains off toward the street or swale instead of the slab, fill low spots that hold water, and work organic matter into the top few inches so the sand holds moisture longer in spring. Then we time the seeding to the season.

Yes. We seed builder lots and commercial sites, stabilize retention pond banks and swales with hydromulch and blankets, install silt fence and inlet protection, grade and topsoil, and renovate thin lawns. The six service pages explain each one.

Per square foot, HomeGuide puts hydroseeding at $0.12 to $0.35. On a 5,000 square foot yard that works out to roughly $1,000 to $1,750, and it notes small-job minimums around $300 to $500. Grading, compost and topsoil are added on top when the ground needs them. We give you a written number after measuring.

Under good conditions, hydroseeded grass often shows in about 5 to 7 days, though Angi gives 7 to 14 days as the usual window for sprouting. Bahiagrass is on the slow end of that because its seed germinates slowly, especially in cool or dry weather. Warm, wet months bring it up fastest.

No. St. Augustinegrass is grown only from sod, plugs or sprigs, because it does not produce usable seed. If that is the lawn you want, we will tell you and talk about sod or plugs instead.

Usually 4 to 6 weeks after seeding, when the blades reach roughly 4 inches. UF/IFAS recommends keeping bahiagrass at 3 to 4 inches with a sharp rotary blade, because its tough leaves and seed stalks tear with a dull one.

Not always in the wet season, when rain often keeps the surface damp. From October through May, yes, or a plan to water by hose, because the sand dries out quickly. Bahia's deep roots make it the best choice for yards that will not have irrigation once established.

Usually by the acre or square foot, plus a charge for each mobilization. Published cost guides place large-area hydroseeding somewhere between about $2,000 and $4,900 an acre. Blanket areas, bonded fiber matrix and storm repairs are listed as separate line items.

Not if the fertilizer contains nitrogen or phosphorus. Sarasota County bans those from June 1 through September 30. We spray seed, mulch and tackifier, record the change, and can come back after the ban to fertilize if the spec requires it.

Often yes. State permit coverage kicks in at an acre of disturbance, and a smaller lot can still need it when it belongs to a bigger subdivision or phased build. Separately, Sarasota County requires erosion and sediment control measures for all new construction to protect neighboring parcels.

Usually Pensacola bahiagrass, which UF/IFAS describes as having an extensive root system and good stress tolerance, and which suits roadside plantings. On visible commercial frontage we often use Argentine for a denser, darker look.

On gentle banks seeded outside the rainy season, often yes. On steeper faces, or when the work falls in June through September, we usually step up to bonded fiber matrix or a blanket, because a single heavy storm can move light mulch before the grass roots.

Straw blankets break down faster and suit slopes that will grass in within a season. Coir, made from coconut fiber, lasts longer and holds up better in channels and on steep faces. A straw-coconut blend sits in between.

We can stabilize the upland part of it. Salt limits what will grow from seed, and the most salt-tolerant common lawn grass here, St. Augustinegrass, has to be sodded or plugged. We often combine blankets with plugs or sod in those spots and keep off any protected wetland or mangrove edge.

Once the grass has rooted through the mulch or blanket and covers the face evenly, which in warm months is often one growing season. We check it after heavy storms until then.

If new construction is within 20 feet of a wetland, other surface water, county drainage canal, ditch or swale, Sarasota County's code requires a siltation barrier at the property line. It goes up before clearing and stays until final inspections are approved.

Usually because the bottom edge was never trenched in, so water runs underneath. The other common cause is putting fence across a ditch where concentrated flow knocks it over. Proper trenching and keeping fence out of channels solves most problems.

The permit holder is responsible, but many builders hire us for it. We check after heavy rain, clear sediment buildup and repair torn or undercut sections.

It is a filter or barrier around a storm drain that catches sediment before water enters the pipe. If there is an inlet on your site or just downhill of bare ground, you most likely need it, and larger site plans list it by location.

UF/IFAS recommends 1 to 2 percent away from the house, which is half a foot to a foot of fall over 50 feet. Along property lines, Sarasota County limits side slopes to 4 horizontal to 1 vertical.

Grass will grow in sand, but it dries out fast and holds few nutrients. Mixing compost into the top 6 inches helps a new lawn get through the dry months. On builder fill it often makes the biggest difference of any step.

Often, if the problem is surface water with nowhere to go. We regrade, fill low spots, reshape the swale or add a drain line. If the water table itself rises to the surface, grading helps less, and we will tell you that up front.

Yes. Our grading crew handles excavation and trenching for French drains and downspout lines and backfills and regrades the trench before seeding.

No. St. Augustinegrass is grown only from sod, plugs or sprigs, so seed will not thicken it. We repair St. Augustine lawns with plugs or sod pieces instead.

Often it is only dormant. Bahia goes brown in long dry spells and recovers with rain or irrigation. We check the crowns before recommending reseeding.

Look for tunnels and small mounds, and for grass that wilts quickly in patches. A soap flush of 1 to 2 ounces of lemon-scented dish detergent in 2 gallons of water over 2 square feet brings them to the surface within a few minutes if they are there.

If more than half the area is still decent grass of the type you want, repair usually makes sense. If weeds dominate or most of it is bare, a full renovation gives a better result for the money.