Home / Business guides / Lawn Care and Landscaping Business
Lawn Care and Landscaping BusinessHow to Start a Lawn Care and Landscaping Business: LLC Setup
Thinking of starting a lawn care or landscaping business? California's air board says one hour on a commercial backpack leaf blower makes as much smog as a car driving 1,100 miles. Here's the one extra that can turn a mowing business into a licensed one, lane by lane, and the key Bizee screens, start to finish.
Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you sign up, at no extra cost to you.
Why an LLC for this business
Mowing: one name
Usually no state license. Contract, insurance and bank share one name
Spraying: a license
California's gardener pesticide license asks LLCs for a certificate of good standing
Installs: one extra
CA: $1,000 or more needs a contractor license. OR: planting a tree. Check your city
How to start it, in order
- Pick your lane first: mow, spray or install. The lane, not the business name, decides which license applies.
- Check your state and city. California wants a contractor license at $1,000 or more; Oregon, to plant a tree.
- Spraying weeds for pay can need a pesticide license, even for general-use products in Texas.
- Form your LLC and get its EIN, then open a business bank account in the LLC's name.
- Quote general liability and commercial auto before your first paid job.
- Winter plan: leaf cleanup, snow removal, holiday lights or dormant tree trimming. Tell your agent first: many policies exclude snow work.
- Before your first hire, learn the IRS test: who controls the job. An LLC with employees needs its own EIN.
Every fact in this guide was checked against a primary source before the video was made.
Ready when you are
Open Bizee from our link and follow along with your state's video.
Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you sign up, at no extra cost to you.