Landscape construction, North Texas
From wild lot to the best room of the house.
We clear it, grade it, feed it and finish it. This half-acre lot, about 12,000 sq ft of work, took four working days with three crews on site. Scroll to watch the crew.
Day 1
Two dead elms come down. The oak stays.
A roped climber takes the dead wood down in pieces, so nothing lands on the fence or the house. Every limb is chipped and hauled off, and the old back fence comes down for a new cedar one.
9 cu yd of chips hauled off
Day 2
Clear, break up, grade.
The oak's root zone gets fenced off first. Then the slab is broken out, the ground is graded to fall at least 6 inches in the first 10 feet from the house, and our licensed irrigator trenches the sprinkler zones.
0 sq ft graded to drain
Day 3
Feed the soil, then plant the natives.
Compost is tilled into every bed first, since North Texas ground is hard on roots. Then the natives go in, under two inches of mulch from the blower truck.
0 native plants set
Day 4
The last stones get tapped level.
The Bermuda goes down in tight, staggered rows, with Zoysia in the oak's shade. Out past the oak's canopy, each flagstone around the fire pit is set by hand.
7,400 sq ft of sod down
Three weeks later, 4:30 pm
First cut, once the roots take hold.
New sod isn't mowed until it has rooted. Three weeks on, the first stripes go in on the diagonal, and at dusk the lights come up and the gas fire pit is lit.
- Day 1 Tree removal
- Day 2 Grading
- Day 3 Beds
- Day 4 Sod and stone
- Week 3 First mow
Mow it yourself
The crew laid the sod. You cut the stripes.
Pick a pattern, then drive. Stripes come from which way the blades lay the grass, so up and down passes read light and dark, just like the real thing.
Arrow keys or W A S D to drive. Esc to pause.Drag on the lawn. The mower drives to a spot just above your finger.
- Mowed
- 0%
- Straight lines
- 0%
- Time
- 0:00
Mow 90% to finish, with at least 75% of it striped along the guide lines. Then try to beat the crew.
Changing the pattern starts a fresh lawn. Scores stay on this device. Nothing is sent anywhere.
What we do
Heavy work, finished clean.
- Day 1
Tree removal
Dead and storm-damaged trees taken down in sections by a roped climber, stumps ground below grade, everything chipped and hauled.
From $1,200 a tree
- Day 2
Grading and drainage
Laser-checked grading away from the slab, French drains and dry creek beds for the yards that hold water after a storm.
From $0.45 a sq ft
- Day 2
Sprinklers
New zones for the new lawn and beds, drip in the beds, a rain and freeze sensor on every system. Installed by our TCEQ-licensed irrigator, Irrigator Name, LI0000000 (sample name and license).
Priced at the walk-through
- Day 3
Beds, compost and mulch
Beds amended with compost before planting, natives for North Texas summers, then mulch blown in by truck, not spread by the bag. Beds edged in steel.
From $95 a cu yd, installed
- Day 4
Sod and seed
Fresh-cut Bermuda for sun, Zoysia or St. Augustine for shade, laid within a day of harvest in staggered rows. Seeded lawns for the big acreage.
From $1.60 a sq ft
- Day 4
Patios and stone
Flagstone, limestone steppers, seat walls and fire pits, set by hand on a compacted base.
From $28 a sq ft
- From week 3
Weekly mowing programs
Same crew, same day each week, starting once new sod has rooted. Bermuda cut at 1 to 1.5 inches, Zoysia 1 to 2, St. Augustine 3 to 4. Pick your stripe pattern; we rotate it so the turf stays upright.
From $45 a visit
Price your project
A ballpark here, a fixed price after we walk the yard.
Rough out the job and the estimate moves as you tap. After a free walk-through we send a drawn plan and a fixed price, in writing, within the week.
How it works
From the walk-through to the first mow.
- This weekWalk-throughThirty minutes in your yard. We measure, check the drainage and look up at the trees.
- Within a weekFixed priceA drawn plan and one number, in writing.
- Two to five working daysThe buildWe call Texas 811 at least two business days before we dig, and flag your sprinkler lines and lighting wire ourselves, since 811 only marks public utilities. On the last day we set your watering plan for the new sod.
- About three weeks laterFirst mowOnce the sod has rooted, we cut the first stripes in the pattern you picked.
Questions we get
How do I water new sod in a Dallas summer?
Little and often until it roots: enough to keep the soil under the sod moist, which can mean every day when it's over 80°F. Once it has rooted, you switch to deep, infrequent watering. Dallas allows sprinklers two days a week and, since May 2026, never between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on any day of the year. For new sod we apply for the city's new-landscape variance, which allows extra watering days for up to five weeks after it goes in. Hand-watering with a hose is allowed any day. Other DFW cities set their own days, and we check yours.
Dallas watering rules and variances Texas A&M AgriLife: how to install and water sod
When does the first mow happen?
Mow once the sod has rooted and is being watered less often; in warm weather that is usually two to three weeks. If a corner holds when you tug it, it's rooted. Warm-season sod laid late in the fall may not root until spring, so the first cut waits until then.
Do you haul everything away?
Yes. Chips, brush, broken concrete and old fence all leave on our trailers. You will not find a pile behind the shed.
What if it rains during the job?
Clay can't be graded wet, so we stop and pick back up once the ground firms up. The price stays the same; only the dates move.
Can you handle the HOA?
We draw the plan your HOA asks for and submit it with you before any work starts.
Can I choose my mowing pattern?
On a weekly program, yes. Straight, diagonal, checkerboard or diamond, rotated through the season so the grass stays healthy.