Beautiful Lawns. Naturally.
Hello! Thank you for visiting our website. Whether you are a DIYer or if you are looking for professional lawn maintenance, we are here to help. If you have any questions beyond what is provided here on our website please reach out, we love talking turf.
We are a locally-owned natural lawn care provider on a mission to educate homeowners about the benefits of a natural approach to lawn care, and create beautiful lawns, naturally.
Our holistic approach to lawn care allows us to get beautiful results while using natural-based and organic materials that are safe for your family, friends, and pets.
By focusing on soil health, beautiful lawns are created as a natural result.
Our Services:
Annual Lawn Service
Three seasons of green for your lawn - February/March Start through October. $850
Must begin service by May 31st of the current year
With our annual service we:
Test your soil’s pH and advise on the proper course of action if your soil’s pH is out of the desired range for tall fescue.
Inspect your lawn for issues, discuss your goals for the yard, and advise on options to achieve the yard you desire.
Feed your turf with a natural-based fertilizer program designed for tall fescue to thrive. This is not cookie-cutter program, we time our feedings with your lawns needs throughout the growing season.
Feed the soil with our proprietary compost tea, brewed fresh and applied with living microorganisms as well as ingredients for them to thrive creating a living soil that supports beautiful turf naturally & encourages natural thatch removal.
We will visit 3 to 4 times over the course of the growing season and during that time your yard will receive a complete fertilization program designed and timed for your lawns need through the different seasons. Organic soil building materials like: humic acid, fulvic acid, biochar, amino acids, peptides, biostimulants, & more all designed to create a living and thriving yard from the soil up.
All materials are kid & pet safe.
A La Carte Options
In addition to our yearly service plans we offer many a-la-carte options to help create a yard you can enjoy year-round.
Mechanical aeration
Over seeding (Fall only)
Top dressing service
Spring pre-emergent weed control (Applied mid-February to mid-March as soil temps approach 50º)
Fall pre-emergent weed control (Applied August 1st through October 31st)
pH adjustment treatments
Lawn restorations - Large bare patches and/or areas overtaken by weeds? We can help.
Lawn installations - We can help you start your yard of right.
Need poison ivy, poison sumack, or brush removed? We offer chemical-free solutions.
All a-la-carte services are bid on a per-job basis.
Call or text and we can discuss what’s best for your situation. 573-445-1500
all prices cover 1/3 acre +/-
Interested in working together? Call or text today.
573-445-1500
Barefoot Natural Lawns is locally owned & operated
What we do, when we do it, and why:
Our holistic approach to lawn health is designed to establish a healthy ecosystem within your yard’s soil, creating an environment within the soil optimal for turf health and vigor.
If you are interested in doing your own lawn care and want to use natural methods and materials please click here for resources and information designed to help you do just that.
As for our professional services: we start every job by testing the soil pH. We do this by taking several samples from the lawn and testing on-site to ensure your soil’s pH is in a range where tall fescue can thrive. (5.5 - 7.5) If your soil is too basic or acidic we have options available to help bring the soil back into the desired range.
This is important because, without the proper soil pH, you could be wasting up to 70% of your fertilizer & nutrients as they will be less available to the roots for absorption. A lawn cannot thrive without the necessary nutrients, and maintaining a healthy soil pH range is critical to growing lush, green lawns.
Small changes in your soil’s pH can have a huge impact on the health of your grass. This is because the pH scale is “logarithmic,” meaning that a pH reading of 5.5 is 10 times more acidic than a pH reading of 6.5, and a pH of 4.5 is 100 times more acidic than a pH reading of 6.5.
If the soil’s compaction level is too high roots are less able to penetrate the soil keeping them shallow and possibly malformed. As a result turf growth is restricted and roots are less able to absorb nutrients and moisture from the soil. This is why every one of our treatments contains natural liquid aeration. Liquid aeration offers several benefits over traditional mechanical aeration including no messy plugs or worry about damage to sprinkler systems & underground fences, much more coverage, and deeper penetration into the soil, helping to break up clay and hardpan, relieving compaction, and allowing water, nutrients, & air to reach deeper into the root zone providing your lawn access to the resources needed to thrive.
By approaching your lawn as a complete ecosystem to be supported rather than just a patch of grass to be fed we are able to create much healthier turf that is not only more resistant to drought and disease it is also much healthier and beautiful, naturally, Check out some of the before and after photos (above and below) to see how we can turn clay and dirt into loose and fertile soil. In addition to aerating we: help break down excess thatch and grass clippings, condition the soil, add organic matter, establish and support beneficial root fungus (mycorrhizae,) enhance root growth, and boost nutrient availability.
This holistic approach is the secret to creating and maintaining such beautiful lawns. You can be doing everything else “right” but having compacted soil, dirt that’s been stripped of its living ecosystem, or improper pH levels, can sabotage your results. We are here to fix that.
*Exact materials applied will vary according to seasonal needs and/or product availability.
We use only products labeled natural and/or organic.
We do this not only for the benefit of our environment but also for the health of our friends, family, and pets.
A note on watering: If your lawn is irrigated or if you are committed to regular watering (30 minutes of watering, 3 times per week) you will see much quicker results.
If you are unable to water regularly you will still see results over time but you will need to have a little more patience.
If you are doing a lawn restoration with over-seeding, watering your new seed is required to get results like the lawn in the photos below. The two following photos show the dramatic results available with our “lawn restoration” service after just 8 weeks from the first soil treatment.
The results speak for themselves
These before and after photos show the results of our yard restoration service after 8 weeks.
“I can’t believe how dramatic the change was. After over 40 years of ownership, my yard looks better than it ever has.”
— Lee, W. Columbia, MO
A note on moles: As we establish a healthy ecosystem in your soil and lawn you may see life returning to your yard in more ways than one. One of the benefits of creating loose and living soil is that it helps to stimulate earthworm activity. Earthworms bring with them many benefits to the soil and turf. As they tunnel through the dirt, worms feed on organic material and small amounts of soil and when that mixture comes out of the other side it’s even better than when it started. Their benefits to soil structure are undeniable.
As earthworm activity increases you may also notice an increase in activity of one of their main predators: moles. Not to worry; we are well-equipped to help you with any mole issues your yard may experience. We use specialized “low profile” mole traps to help eliminate your mole issues without getting in the way (or in the blades) of your lawn mower. We also mark our traps using biodegradable marking tape & stakes as keeping your home & family’s environment as natural as possible is very important to us.
Frequently Asked Questions
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During some periods of the growing season, we can experience infrequent rainfall. During dry times your turf and landscaping can benefit from supplemental watering. We recommend doing one or two deep waterings per week at about .5” to 1” of water per square foot each time you water. This is about .31 to .62 gallons per square foot. Feel free to give us a call with help calculating how long you should water for your lawn size and sprinkler setup. Watering in the morning is best if possible.
In addition to watering try to avoid driving on your grass or exposing it to stress from sources of heat, chemicals, cleaners, etc…
In the fall when leaves are falling rake or mulch the leaves before they are able to create dead spots in your lawn.
Mow tall. We prefer 4” mowing height if possible. Set your mower to it’s highest setting or ask your lawn mowing service provider to mow it as tall as possible. Mowing frequently is also better for the grass and if you are mowing yourself keep your blades sharp.We recommend pre-emergent weed control & physical removal of any weeds that appear. There are some pretty cool weed-removal tools available.
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Natural fertilizers feed your soil whereas synthetic fertilizers tend to focus on feeding the grass growing in the soil. (Think hearty meal vs fast food)
Both provide the same primary nutrients: nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium; but natural fertilizers generally release nutrients at a slower rate and work to build the health of the soil over time whereas the synthetics don’t benefit the soil like natural fertilizers do. For us the choice was simple.
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Other than being the envy of all of your neighbors the main drawback to going natural is that by creating healthy soil your lawn will be more attractive to beneficial creatures like earthworms, which are great for the soil but also may attract moles. Chances are your yard already has moles but having rich, uncompacted soil is hard for them to resist. Not to worry! We wouldn’t create a problem without solving it for you. If moles become a problem (or are a problem already) contact us and we can discuss different ways to manage them.