SOTE LLC is a veteran-owned lawn, landscape, and drainage company based on Highway 190 in Covington. We handle drainage problems, landscape design, lawn care, property maintenance, and land clearing for homes and businesses across Covington and the surrounding St. Tammany Parish communities. When you call, you talk to the crew that does the work.
Our shop sits on US-190 in Covington, so our crews are minutes from most of the properties we work on. That matters more than it sounds. Covington lots are different from lots across the lake. Many sit on flat clay soil that holds water for days after a heavy rain. Older neighborhoods near downtown and along the Bogue Falaya have mature oaks and pines with root systems that affect anything you plant or grade near them. Newer subdivisions off Highway 21 and Highway 1085 were often built with minimal grading, so water pools in side yards and along fence lines.
We have worked on all of these. Because we are local, we can come look at a problem quickly, give you a straight answer, and come back when the job calls for it.
Standing water is the number one call we get from Covington homeowners. We install French drains, catch basins, channel drains, downspout extensions, and yard regrading to move water away from your foundation and lawn.
Learn more about our drainage services →
From a fresh front-bed makeover to a full backyard plan, we design and install plantings, beds, sod, mulch, stone, and borders that fit the Covington climate and your budget.
See our landscape design work →
Reliable mowing, edging, trimming, and cleanup on a schedule you can count on. Same crew, same day each visit.
Read about our lawn care plans →-p-1600.jpg)
Seasonal bed cleanups, shrub trimming, mulch refresh, leaf removal, and storm cleanup. We keep your property looking sharp year-round so you do not have to think about it.
Learn about ongoing maintenance →
Lot clearing, brush removal, underbrush cleanup, and site prep for new construction, fences, or outbuildings. We work on residential lots and larger acreage around Covington, Goodbee, Folsom, and Abita Springs.
See our land clearing services →We work throughout the City of Covington and the unincorporated areas around it, including:
If you are in St. Tammany Parish and do not see your area listed, call us. We probably cover it.
SOTE is owned and operated by a combat veteran. We bring the same discipline to your property that we brought to our service. Show up on time, do the job right, and stand behind the work.
The crew that quotes your job is the crew that does the job. We do not hand your project off to someone you have never met.
Questions, changes, or problems go to the same people every time. No call centers and no runaround.
We come out, look at the property, and tell you what it needs and what it costs. If the fix is simpler than you expected, we will say so.
Flat lots and clay soil are a bad mix. The fix is usually a French drain or catch basin tied to a discharge point, sometimes with light regrading.
Downspouts dumping next to the house and grading that slopes toward the slab are the usual causes. We extend downspouts underground and reshape the grade.
Narrow side yards trap runoff from two roofs. A channel drain or shallow French drain along the fence line usually solves it.
We raise beds, improve drainage underneath, and swap in plants that tolerate wet feet.
We clear brush, remove small trees, and get the lot ready for whatever comes next.
Tell us the address and what you are seeing. A photo or two helps, but is not required.
We look at where the water goes, where the sun hits, and what the soil is doing, and ask what you want the property to look like.
One price, written out, with what is included. No pressure and no surprise add-ons once the work starts.
We show up on time, do the job, and clean up. For drainage work, we test it with a hose before we leave so you can see the water moving where it should.
If something is not right after the first big rain, you call the same number and talk to the same people. We fix it.
Covington sits in USDA zone 9a with hot, wet summers and the occasional hard freeze. Much landscaping fails here because it was designed for somewhere else. We use plants proven on the Northshore: live oaks, Southern magnolias, crape myrtles, and bald cypress for trees; azaleas, camellias, Indian hawthorn, loropetalum, and dwarf yaupon for shrubs; and Louisiana iris, society garlic, and muhly grass where beds stay damp. For lawns, St. Augustine handles shade and moisture, centipede is the low-maintenance choice in full sun, and zoysia is the premium option for a dense turf.
We also plan for water. Beds are shaped to shed rather than hold, mulch is kept off the slab, and anything that hates wet roots gets raised or moved. A landscape that drains well looks better in August and survives the next tropical storm.
We work with homeowners, HOAs, property managers, churches, and small businesses throughout Covington. Residential or commercial, one-time project or ongoing service, we treat every property like it is our own.
Real Google reviews from real properties on the Northshore.
Tell us what is going on with your property and we will get back to you quickly. Or call us directly at (985) 249-9817.
