The people who lived here before me were supplied with a lawn mower and all the equipment to take care of the large yard. When I moved in, the landlord had taken them away and when I inquired about it said they'd prefer to do it themselves. I was calling every week asking when they'll come and mow the lawn, which only happened about four times all summer. So, when it snowed there was like a foot of grass being buried underneath... now that the snow has melted it's really bad out there. She wants me to rake it and get it ready to be mowed and I don't feel I should have to. If the lawn was tended to like I would have kept it, it wouldn't have been a foot long when it snowed - which would make the raking right now a whole lot easier. Its a freakin jungle out there! Am I wrong to think its her duty to handle this and not mine? If I hired a landscaping company, would it be so terribly wrong to submit a receipt and deduct it of my rent?It's not a house, it's a duplex and the tenents on the opposite side said in the three years they'd been here, they'd been provided with the equipment until last year.I should have mentioned this before, but there is nothing stated in the lease. There were just verbal agreements that the rental company would handle the yard work since they took away the equipment that was previously provided.

We have rented many houses and doing the yard work was always our responsibility, not the landlords.

It would seem to me that when your landlord said they "prefered to do it themselves" that they took responsibility for the full care of the lawn, including spring cleaning to get ready for mowing. I would point out that you asked about taking care of the lawn when you moved in and were told that they were doing it now so it shouldn't be your responsibilty. Of course it would depend on if there was anything in the lease about whose job lawn care was.