Lawn & Landscaping Glossary
Plain definitions of the terms you’ll hear when you talk about lawn care, landscaping, patios, drainage and snow removal.
Aeration
Pulling small plugs of soil out of the lawn so air, water and fertilizer can reach the roots. Also called core aeration. Best done in the fall in the Chicago area.
Lawn maintenance →Annuals
Flowers that live for one season and are replanted each year, like petunias or begonias. Used for bright seasonal color in beds and planters.
Landscape design & build →Anti-icing
Spraying a salt brine on pavement before a storm so snow and ice don’t bond to the surface. It makes plowing easier and cuts down on refreeze.
Snow & ice management →Backfill
The soil or stone put back into a trench or hole after pipe, a wall or a footing is installed. Good backfill is compacted in layers so it doesn’t settle later.
Drainage solutions →Base
The layer of compacted gravel under a patio, walkway or wall. A thick, well-compacted base is what keeps pavers from sinking and shifting.
Hardscaping →Bed edging
A clean cut line or border between the lawn and a planting bed. It keeps grass out of the beds and mulch out of the lawn.
Lawn maintenance →Brine
A mix of salt and water sprayed on pavement before snow. See anti-icing.
Snow & ice management →Catch basin
A small underground box with a grate that collects surface water from a low spot and sends it into a drain pipe.
Drainage solutions →Certificate of insurance (COI)
A document from an insurance company that proves a contractor carries liability and workers’ compensation coverage. Property managers usually ask for one before work starts.
Commercial maintenance →Clay soil
Heavy, dense soil common across Will County. It holds water and drains slowly, which is why many local yards stay soggy after rain.
Drainage solutions →Compaction
When soil gets pressed down so tightly that roots, air and water can’t move through it. Aeration helps loosen compacted lawns. Compaction is a good thing under pavers.
Lawn maintenance →Cool-season grass
Grasses like Kentucky bluegrass and fescue that grow best in spring and fall. Most lawns in northern Illinois are cool-season grass.
Lawn maintenance →De-icing
Spreading salt or other melt products on ice and snow that has already formed, so it breaks up and can be cleared.
Snow & ice management →Dethatching
Raking out the layer of dead grass and roots (thatch) that builds up at the soil surface. Too much thatch blocks water and fertilizer.
Lawn maintenance →Downspout extension
Pipe that carries roof water away from the bottom of a downspout. It can run above ground or be buried and sent to a safe outlet.
Downspout drainage →Drywell
An underground chamber surrounded by stone that holds water from downspouts, drains or a sump pump and lets it soak slowly into the ground.
Drywells →Fall cleanup
End-of-season yard work: leaf removal, cutting back perennials, cleaning out beds and getting the lawn ready for winter.
Lawn maintenance →Fertilizer program
A series of feedings spread through the growing season so the lawn gets the right nutrients at the right time, often with weed control.
Lawn maintenance →French drain
A trench with perforated pipe set in washed stone and wrapped in fabric. It collects water from a soggy area and carries it downhill to an outlet.
French drains →Geotextile fabric
A tough fabric that lets water through but keeps soil out. It wraps drain stone and sits under some paver bases to keep layers from mixing.
French drains →Grading
Shaping the ground so it slopes the right way, usually away from the house. Good grading is the first step in fixing most drainage problems.
Drainage solutions →Ground cover
Low plants that spread to cover soil, like pachysandra or creeping phlox. They fill space, hold soil and cut down on weeds.
Landscape design & build →Hardscape
The non-living parts of a landscape: patios, walkways, steps, retaining walls and edging made from pavers, stone or concrete.
Hardscaping →Hedge trimming
Shaping shrubs and hedges so they stay neat, healthy and the right size for the space.
Lawn maintenance →JULIE
Illinois’ one-call service for marking underground utilities. Contractors call JULIE before digging so gas, electric and water lines are marked.
Drainage solutions →Kentucky bluegrass
A cool-season grass known for its rich green color and soft feel. It’s the most common grass in sod sold in the Chicago area.
Sod installation →Landscape design
A plan for how a yard will look and work: where beds, plants, patios, walkways and lawn go, chosen for the sun, soil and budget.
Landscape design & build →Mowing height
How tall the grass is left after mowing. Cutting too short stresses the lawn. Most local lawns do best around 3 to 3.5 inches.
Lawn maintenance →Mulch
Shredded wood spread over planting beds. It holds moisture, keeps weeds down, protects roots and gives beds a clean, finished look.
Landscape design & build →Overseeding
Spreading grass seed over an existing lawn to fill thin spots. Works best right after fall aeration.
Lawn maintenance →Paver
A brick-like block made of concrete or stone, laid tightly together to build patios, walkways, steps and driveways.
Hardscaping →Per-push contract
A snow agreement where you pay each time the crew plows. Compare with a seasonal contract, which is a set price for the whole winter.
Snow & ice management →Perennials
Plants that come back every year, like hostas, daylilies and coneflowers. They are the backbone of most planting beds.
Landscape design & build →Polymeric sand
A special sand swept into paver joints that hardens when wet. It locks pavers in place and helps keep weeds and ants out.
Hardscaping →Pop-up emitter
A small cap at the end of a buried downspout line. It opens to let water out at the surface and closes when the flow stops.
Downspout drainage →Pre-emergent
A weed control applied in early spring that stops weeds like crabgrass before they sprout.
Lawn maintenance →Regrading
Reshaping an existing yard so water flows away from the house and low spots stop holding water.
Drainage solutions →Retaining wall
A wall that holds back soil on a slope. Built with segmental blocks or boulders on a compacted base with drainage behind it.
Hardscaping →Seasonal contract
A snow agreement with a set price for the whole winter, no matter how many times it snows. Compare with per-push.
Snow & ice management →Seat wall
A low wall, usually around a patio, built at sitting height so it doubles as extra seating.
Hardscaping →Service trigger
The amount of snow that starts a plowing visit in a snow contract. One inch is a common trigger.
Snow & ice management →Sod
Strips of grown grass with the roots and a thin layer of soil, rolled out to create an instant lawn.
Sod installation →Spring cleanup
Start-of-season yard work: clearing winter debris, cutting back old growth, edging and refreshing beds, and getting the lawn ready to grow.
Lawn maintenance →Standing water
Water that sits on the lawn or near the house long after it rains. It usually points to poor grading or soil that drains slowly.
Drainage solutions →Striping
The light and dark pattern on a freshly cut lawn, made by mowing in alternating directions.
Lawn maintenance →Sump pump discharge
The pipe that carries water pumped out of a basement sump pit. It should send water well away from the house, often underground.
Drainage solutions →Swale
A shallow, wide channel in the lawn that guides surface water toward an outlet. Many yards have one along the property line.
Drainage solutions →Thatch
A layer of dead grass stems and roots between the green grass and the soil. A thin layer is normal; a thick one causes problems.
Lawn maintenance →Topsoil
The top, richest layer of soil. Used when grading and before laying sod or planting beds.
Sod installation →Washed stone
Clean, crushed gravel with the fine dust washed out so water flows through it easily. Used in French drains and drywells.
French drains →Weed control
Treatments that prevent or kill weeds in lawns and beds, from pre-emergents in spring to spot treatments in summer.
Lawn maintenance →No terms match. Try another word, or ask us.
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