A yard service is easy to start with a phone call and harder to stop once a crew has a key, a schedule, and a habit. Before you sign anything for Mom's yard, read what the visit covers, how you end it, and who pays when something breaks. The contract is the part you can check from far away.
Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.
Read what the visit actually covers
Ask for the visit list in writing: mowing, edging, leaf removal, trimming, and whether the crew hauls the clippings away or leaves them on the lawn. Ask how many visits happen each month and whether the schedule changes in a dry or wet season. Ask whether they walk the property at each visit and what they report back. If the list says lawn only, do not assume they will also clear the back steps or the front walk.
Ask how you stop it
Ask for the cancellation rule in plain words: how much notice you must give, whether there is a fee, and whether a visit already paid for is refunded. Ask who holds the key or gate code and how it is returned when the contract ends. Ask whether a single visit can be skipped without losing the whole month. You want to be able to stop the service without a fight, because you will be the one deciding from far away.
Check who pays for damage
Yard crews break things: sprinkler heads, outdoor outlets, the edge of a garden bed, a mailbox post. Ask who is responsible for repairs, how a claim is made, and whether the company carries liability insurance that covers property damage. Ask for the insurance certificate in writing and check that it names the company, not only a person. Take photos of the yard and the gate before the first visit so you have a baseline.
Keep the contract in the folder
Put the signed contract, the visit list, the insurance certificate, the key or code record, and the cancellation rule in one folder that you and one local person can reach. Write down the name of the local contact who will meet the crew on the first day. Add the phone number of the company office, not only the crew lead's cell.
What to do tonight
Ask for the written visit list and the cancellation rule before you agree to anything over the phone. Take photos of the yard, the gate, the mailbox, and the sprinkler heads, and send them to yourself so you have them. Then decide who will meet the first crew, and ask that person to check the work when it is done.
What to leave with the doctor
The yard contract itself does not belong with the doctor. Tell the doctor if your mother has been doing yard work herself, using a ladder, or lifting bags, since that can change what help she needs and what she should avoid. If she has had a fall in the yard or on the walk out, write down what happened and where.