Arlington sits between Dallas and Fort Worth and belongs to neither’s water system, which means the watering rules here differ from the ones your friends in Plano or Frisco follow. The soil changes across the city as well — heavier clay eastward, lighter and rockier toward the west. Advice borrowed from either neighbouring metro is only half right. This page lists landscapers serving Arlington.
What Arlington landscapers handle
Maintenance across a long March-to-November season, with heavy spring growth and a stressed midsummer.
Irrigation design, repair and retrofit — the licensed portion of the trade in Texas.
Drainage and grading, particularly on the clay-dominated eastern side.
Large-lot design. Parts of south Arlington carry noticeably bigger lots than the dense suburbs north of the Metroplex, which changes what’s practical — more room for real design, and more square footage to irrigate.
Hardscape — patios, outdoor kitchens, shade structures, fire features.
Licensing: what Texas actually requires
Texas has no general landscaping contractor licence. Mowing, planting and maintenance require no state credential.
Irrigation is licensed and enforced. Under Texas Occupations Code Chapter 1903, anyone who sells, designs, consults on, installs, maintains, alters, repairs, services or inspects an irrigation system must hold a TCEQ licence — a 40-hour training course, a six-hour exam requiring 70% in each section, valid three years. Irrigation Technicians may work under a licensed irrigator’s direct supervision.
Unlicensed irrigation work is a Class C misdemeanour under §1903.251, with civil penalties up to $5,000 per day.
Commercial pesticide application is licensed separately through the Texas Department of Agriculture. Verify general liability and workers’ compensation directly.
What’s specific to Arlington
Different water rules from the northern suburbs. Arlington operates Stage 1 year-round water restrictions, allowing two days per week of landscape watering. That’s a distinct regime from the North Texas Municipal Water District Stage 2 rules governing Plano, Frisco, McKinney and Garland — different stage, different assigned days, different enforcement.
The practical warning: advice, assigned watering days and rebate information circulating from the northern suburbs do not apply here. Confirm your permitted days and current restrictions with the City of Arlington rather than assuming Metroplex-wide uniformity. A landscaper who quotes NTMWD days at you is working from the wrong rulebook.
As anywhere with a two-day limit, good practice means deep infrequent cycles, cycle-and-soak programming so clay actually absorbs water rather than shedding it, generous mulch, and hydrozoning so plants with different needs aren’t sharing a valve.
Soil shifts across the city. Arlington straddles a geological transition:
- Eastern and central areas trend toward the heavier expansive clay typical of the Dallas side — poor drainage, seasonal shrink-swell, and the foundation movement that comes with it
- Western areas trend lighter and rockier as you move toward the Fort Worth side, draining faster but complicating excavation
Ask a prospective contractor what they expect to find on your lot. A specific answer referencing your part of town indicates real local experience; a generic “it’s all clay around here” does not.
Foundation movement on the clay side. Where expansive clay dominates, the North Texas practice of foundation watering applies — running soaker hoses at a consistent distance from the slab during hot dry spells so the clay doesn’t shrink away from the foundation. Consistency matters more than volume.
Heat and hard freezes. Arlington sits around USDA zone 8a–8b. Summers push past 100°F; winters bring genuine hard freezes and periodic ice storms. Plants need both tolerances, which rules out much of the Gulf Coast palette.
Ice and hail damage. Brittle fast-growing species split under ice load — Bradford pear being the regional cautionary tale. North Texas hail also shreds large-leafed plants and damages shade structures, so material durability is a fair question on anything built.
Storm drainage on larger lots. Bigger south Arlington properties often have real drainage runs to manage, and where water leaves your property matters. Directing runoff onto a neighbour solves one problem by creating a worse one.
Pricing expectations
Typical US ranges for 2026 are listed on the homepage.
Arlington sits near the DFW average and generally below Plano and Frisco.
Two local notes. On larger lots, irrigation costs scale with area faster than people expect — get the zone count and coverage plan in writing before comparing bids. And on the western side, ask what happens if excavation hits rock, because that’s where quotes move once digging starts.
Neighborhoods served
Landscapers listed here work across Arlington, including North Arlington, South Arlington, Interlochen, Viridian, Cravens Park, Sunrise, Woodland West, the Entertainment District and Southeast Arlington.
Most also serve neighbouring cities — Fort Worth, Grand Prairie, Mansfield, Kennedale, Euless, Bedford, Hurst and Pantego.
How this directory helps
Every landscaper here is listed with business name, address and phone so you can verify them yourself.
Three questions sort Arlington contractors. Ask for the TCEQ irrigator licence number. Ask which watering restrictions apply to your address — anyone who answers with NTMWD days is working from the wrong city’s rules. And ask what soil they expect on your lot; the honest answer depends on which side of Arlington you’re on.