Landscaping in Oklahoma is wind, red dirt, hail, and bermuda that can survive almost anything except a week of stones followed by a month of blaze. Eastern yards still deal with thicker trees and more leftover humidity. Western yards deal with exposure and soil that blows. Grade against a slab is the serious part. A bed that holds water, or a bed that pulls water away too fast on expansive clay, both end up as cracks and damp brick.
Say the actual job. A weekly cut. A yard shredded by hail. A young tree bent by the south wind. A downspout that dumps at the foundation. Red dirt washed across a patio after one hard rain. Do not open with a dream board of plants if the soil line is above the slab. That sentence comes first, because the house is the client and the lawn is the surface.
Trees need a plains honesty. Eastern redcedar makes a windbreak and also a fire and pollen problem close to the wall. A shade tree is a gift until it hangs over the ridge and drops a limb the next time the wind stays up all night. If something is hung on the roof, keep people clear and say so. If you want staking, lifting, or removal, describe the distance to the house and to the service drop without guessing at heights you have not paced.
Sprinklers are common and commonly wrong. A zone that runs at dawn in a south wind evaporates half its work and still overwaters the shady north bed. Broken heads flood the expansion joint. If the system exists, say what it fails to do. If it does not exist, do not accept a planting plan that needs a daily drink through August. Hail will reset a tender bed in one afternoon anyway.
Oklahoma weather will blow soil, strip leaves, and test the grade again. Call with the town and the reason: cut, trees, beds, irrigation, or water at the brick. Walk the south side and the downhill side before you dial. Call the number on this page.