On this page

1. What does lawn care cost in Terre Haute?
2. What is the grass height limit in Terre Haute?
3. How much of the yard is yours to keep up?
4. What does the city pick up?
5. Why do neighbourhoods price differently?
6. What does the soil do here?
7. Questions

Mowing, fertilization, cleanups and aeration across the City of Terre Haute, priced on the grass we measure at your address, and landscaping, holiday lighting and snow plowing too. Older in-town lots hold less grass than their size suggests, and the quote is set by the grass, not the lot.

What does lawn care cost in Terre Haute?

Lot size	Mowing, trim, edge and blowper visit	Fertilization and weed controlper treatment	Seasonal cleanup (leaf mulching)per cleanup	Core aerationper visit
¼ acre	$49	$66	$147	$249
½ acre	$54–$61	$73–$82	$162–$183	$249
¾ acre	$63–$71	$85–$96	$189–$213	$249
1 acre	$70–$80	$95–$108	$210–$240	$249–$286

Mowing, trim, edge and blowper visit

¼ acre

$49

½ acre

$54–$61

¾ acre

$63–$71

1 acre

$70–$80

Fertilization and weed controlper treatment

¼ acre

$66

½ acre

$73–$82

¾ acre

$85–$96

1 acre

$95–$108

Seasonal cleanup (leaf mulching)per cleanup

¼ acre

$147

½ acre

$162–$183

¾ acre

$189–$213

1 acre

$210–$240

Core aerationper visit

¼ acre

$249

½ acre

$249

¾ acre

$249

1 acre

$249–$286

The median Terre Haute home was built in 1957. Old neighbourhoods mean mature trees, narrow deep lots, detached garages off alleys, and a lot of trim line for each square foot of grass. That is why we measure the grass rather than the lot: a 0.4-acre lot in Farrington's Grove can hold less mowing than a quarter acre in a newer subdivision.

What is the grass height limit in Terre Haute?

Height limit, Sec. 6-170(a)

8inches

Minimum, May 1 to Oct 31, Sec. 6-170(b)

4cuts

To cut after a notice, Sec. 6-171(a)

10days

Maximum fine, each day a new offense

$300

Grass or weeds over eight inches inside the city limits is a violation. The city also requires at least four cuts between May 1 and October 31 every year, which almost nobody knows.

Enforcement is Code Enforcement, a division of the Terre Haute Police Department, at (812) 244-2530; complaints go through the city's 311 line. A notice goes by certified mail to the owner on the county tax statement, with ten days to cut. If the city mows it, you are billed the actual cost plus administrative costs. Unpaid after thirty days, the bill becomes a lien collected with your property taxes (Sec. 6-172).

How much of the yard is yours to keep up?

More than the lot. Sec. 6-160 makes you responsible for the strip between your property line and the road (the tree lawn), and for your half of any alley behind you. Terre Haute has a great many alleys, especially in Farrington's Grove, around Collett Park and on the near south side.

We mow the tree lawn and your half of the alley as part of every normal visit, at no extra charge.

The trees in the tree lawn are a different matter: the city's Urban Forestry office controls them. You need a city permit to plant a tree in the right-of-way or to remove one (Sec. 6-196), and topping a public tree is unlawful (Sec. 6-200).

What does the city pick up?

Grass clippings and leaves count as ordinary trash here (Sec. 6-95(c)). There is no yard-waste cart or fee, and plastic bags are fine. For leaf work beyond what the city takes, see seasonal cleanup.

Why do neighbourhoods price differently?

• Farrington's Grove (Poplar, South 7th, Hulman and South 4th): 1,110 historic buildings, most from 1890 to 1920. Deep lots, big trees and alleys: often less grass than the size of the lot suggests, and more of it to trim.
• Collett Park: large houses from 1900 to 1920 on tree-lined streets around the city's oldest park.
• Ohio Boulevard and Deming Park: the 80-foot median is city park land, maintained by the city, not by you.
• Around Indiana State: mostly rentals. The owner is billed wherever they live.
• Newer subdivisions have more open grass, fewer trees and no alley. More of the lot is lawn, and each extra 10,000 square feet adds little to the price, so the cost per square foot of grass is lower.

For Allendale and the south side, see South Terre Haute.

What does the soil do here?

Most of the city sits on Iva silt loam, the most common soil in Vigo County. USDA rates it somewhat poorly drained, with water half a foot to two feet below the surface from December to April. In practice:

• March ruts. A mower on saturated silt loam leaves marks that last all year, so spring work waits for the ground.
• It compacts. Lawns that take foot traffic benefit from core aeration, best done in early September. We aerate from August through October.

Month by month timing is on the Terre Haute lawn calendar.

Questions