Lee’s Summit has a character that’s hard to find anywhere else in the KC metro — a relaxed, country feel with easy access to everything the city has to offer. James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area, Lake Jacomo, the rolling lots along the suburban edge — it’s a place where people want land, not just a yard.
That growth has created a specific set of land problems we see constantly. Properties that were farm fields five or ten years ago got subdivided and developed — buyers got their house and their acreage, kept up the yard, and let the back half go. Give it a few seasons and you’ve got a solid wall of Eastern red cedar, invasive honeysuckle, Bradford pear, and hedge trees reclaiming everything behind the treeline.
Beyond clearing, Lee’s Summit’s older subdivisions — many built in the 1980s — deal with chronic drainage problems. Yards that pool after every rain, basements that take on water, driveways washing out. French drains and proper grading fix these problems for good.
Solid Ground handles all of it. Hap runs every job personally out of Grain Valley — about 20 minutes from Lee’s Summit. Call 816-316-0261 and get a straight answer on what your property needs.
The right tool for overgrown back acreage on Lee’s Summit properties. Our Takeuchi TL12-R2 with FAE mulcher head grinds Eastern red cedar, honeysuckle, Bradford pear, and hedge trees into mulch where they stand — no burning, no hauling, no topsoil damage.
~1 acre/day · $1,600–$2,200/day
Fast, cost-effective clearing for lots waiting on development, overgrown fields, and properties that need regular maintenance. Covers 4–5 acres per day — ideal for developers managing vacant lots or landowners keeping growth in check between seasons.
4–5 acres/day · $1,200–$2,000/day
Chronic drainage problems are common in Lee’s Summit’s older neighborhoods. If your yard pools after rain, your driveway washes out, or your basement takes on water, a properly installed French drain solves it for good. We grade, trench, and install — done right the first time.
Priced by project · Free consultation
Land leveling and shaping for barns, shops, driveways, and building pads. Whether you’re prepping a lot for a new build or correcting drainage slope on an existing property, we get the ground right before any structure goes up.
Priced by project · Free consultation
New gravel driveways and rural road repair built with proper grading and drainage from the start. If your driveway washes out every spring, the fix isn’t more gravel — it’s proper drainage underneath. We address the cause, not just the symptom.
Priced by project · Free consultation
Lee’s Summit is one of the fastest growing areas in the KC metro. If you’re a developer or builder managing vacant lots waiting on permits, we keep them clear and maintained — brush hogging on a schedule or full clearing when you’re ready to break ground.
Residential & commercial · Free consultation
One of the most common things we hear from Lee’s Summit property owners after a forestry mulching or brush clearing job: the tick population dropped dramatically. Dense honeysuckle thickets, cedar brush, and overgrown field edges are prime tick habitat. Families with kids and dogs who couldn’t use their back acreage without coming in covered in ticks can actually enjoy their property again.
That’s not a side benefit — for a lot of Lee’s Summit homeowners it’s the primary reason they call. If your property borders the kind of wooded edge that James A. Reed and Lake Jacomo area properties tend to have, you know exactly what we’re talking about.
Forestry mulching eliminates the dense, low-lying brush where ticks live and breed. The mulch layer left behind doesn’t provide the same habitat. It’s a practical, lasting improvement to how usable your land actually is.
You bought a 10-acre property in Lee’s Summit — maybe five or six years ago when this part of Jackson County was really starting to develop. The house is great, the yard looks good. But the back five acres that used to be a farm field? You mow to the treeline and try not to think about what’s happening back there.
What’s happening back there is Eastern red cedar coming in fast, honeysuckle filling every gap, Bradford pear spreading where the old fence rows were, and hedge trees that have been there since the farm days getting bigger every year. Left alone, that back acreage goes from manageable to impenetrable in a few seasons.
Forestry mulching is the clean solution. One pass with the FAE mulcher and that wall of overgrowth becomes a layer of wood chip mulch. No burn piles, no debris trucks, no disruption to the soil. You get your land back.
~20 min
from Lee’s Summit
4–5 ac
brush hogging per day
~1 ac
forestry mulching per day
Free
consultations
Our rate is $1,600 to $2,200 per day with an average production rate of about 1 acre per day depending on vegetation density and terrain. Most residential back-acreage jobs in Lee’s Summit run 1 to 3 days. Start with a free consultation — we can often give you a ballpark over the phone.
Yes — significantly. Dense honeysuckle, cedar brush, and overgrown field edges are prime tick habitat. Removing that cover and leaving a mulch layer in its place dramatically reduces the environment ticks need to thrive. It’s one of the most consistent things property owners report after a clearing job.
Most likely yes. Pooling is usually a grading problem, a drainage problem, or both. We assess the slope and drainage pattern on your property and recommend the right fix — whether that’s regrading, a French drain, or a combination. We’ve done a lot of drainage work in Lee’s Summit’s older subdivisions where this is a chronic issue.
Yes — we work with developers and builders regularly. If you have vacant lots in Lee’s Summit that need to stay clear while you’re waiting on permits or financing, we can set up a maintenance schedule or do a full clearing when you’re ready to break ground. Call Hap directly to talk through what you need.
Typically 1 to 2 weeks depending on our schedule and weather. We’re based in Grain Valley — about 20 minutes away — so we’re not traveling far to get to you. If you have a time-sensitive project, call Hap at 816-316-0261 and we’ll do our best to work around your timeline.
Call or text Hap at 816-316-0261 — we can often give you a ballpark by phone for smaller jobs. For larger or more complex properties we’ll schedule a free site visit. No obligation, no pressure.
“Building Trust on Solid Ground.”
Solid Ground Excavation | Grain Valley, MO 64029 | Serving Lee’s Summit and Jackson County
