Choosing a lawn care company can be a difficult process. Weighing the options between a local company versus a known national brand can be a difficult process to get through. In an effort to provide consumers with all the information necessary to make an informed and quality decision on their lawn care needs, we'll take a comprehensive look at one of the biggest national lawn care companies, TruGreen Chemlawn. 

History of TruGreen/Chemlawn

TruGreen Chemlawn began servicing lawn care customers in the spring of 1973. A national behemoth, TruGreen's corporate headquarters are located in Memphis, Tennessee. With hundreds of locations across the United States, TruGreen usually has multiple branches within each metropolitan city. In 1992, the company was acquired by ServiceMaster, a conglomerate that owns other popular national service companies such as Terminix, Merry Maids, Service Master Clean, and others.

Your Options: The TruGreen Chemlawn Lawn Care Packages

Much like other lawn care companies, TruGreen offers multiple packages to choose from, depending on your budget and lawn care needs. Their three packages are:

• TruMaintenance Lawn Care Package: This package features six fertilizer applications, and a preventative crabgrass treatment.
   
• TruHealth Lawn Care Package: Contains everything in the TruMaintenance, plus a lime treatment.
   
• TruComplete Lawn Care Package: Contains everything in the TruHealth plan, plus a fall aeration.

The Pros of Dealing with TruGreen Chemlawn

• Competitive Prices: As a national company, TruGreen Chemlawn has tremendous negotiating power with their suppliers ensuring a lower cost than most lawn care companies. This means that they can compete with most companies, offering very competitive prices.
   
• Name Brand Products: The TruGreen Chemlawn brand has been around since the mid-seventies and is recognized as a quality brand. The products are a good mixture of fertilizer and weed control that offers good results.
   
• Many Branches Covering Most of America: No matter where you are located at, chances are there is a TruGreen Chemlawn branch near you. While these are small, satellite branches; TruGreen Chemlawn offers a wide service area due to their high number of branches.

The Cons of Dealing with TruGreen Chemlawn

• The Same Products In All Areas: A drawback of national companies is the fact that most branches use the same products across large regional areas. This means that instead of a customized blend for your area, you are more than likely receiving the same fertilizer that is applied across the country.
   
• Some Inexperienced Technicians That May Differ: With such a large company, turnover is a constant problem. Many technicians are not certified and often change throughout the season. This means that you may have multiple technicians on your lawn throughout the year, without knowing you lawns history.
   
• Large National Call Center, NOT a Local Branch: Due to the fact that they're a national company, TruGreen Chemlawn has one national call center that handles all customer service issues. This means that you do not talk to your local branch for problems with your lawn.
   
• Company Future In Doubt: Recently, ServiceMaster (TruGreen Chemlawn's Parent Company) announced that they were selling the division. What this means for consumers in the long term is not known, as TruGreen Chemlawn looks for a buyer to continue servicing lawns.

Choosing a Lawn Care Company Should be About More Than Price

Spring is going to be here any week, and choosing a lawn care company is pretty high up on your honey-do list. But where do you start? How do you know what to look for in a company? Don't worry, we have you covered with our handy-dandy lawn care company hiring guide! This free guide will walk you through step-by-step everything you need to know when hiring a lawn care company. Learn what you need to look for by downloading your free guide below!

Shaun Kanary has been a part of the Green Industry for the past 15 years. As the Director of Marketing for Weed Pro Lawn Care, a Cleveland and Columbus Lawn Care Service Provider, Shaun is a regular contributor to the Weed Pro Blog, and other industry magazine and blogs.  Shaun on Google+     Shaun on LinkedIn     Shaun on Twitter