Cutting Edge

A brand new fleet of state-of-the-art grass cutting equipment will cover a massive 55 million square metres this summer.

Over £500,000 was invested in new ground maintenance equipment in January to keep the city’s parks neat, verges tidy and wildflower meadows at their best.

Ride on mowers with flail decks especially designed for wildflower meadows are among the new fleet, as are Samurai grass cutters that are capable of cutting some of Plymouth’s sloping banks with a better quality of cut.

These ride-ons use a powerful and efficient all-wheel drive system which can be switched between 4WD to 2WD depending on ground conditions and can also handle slopes up to 30 degrees, perfect for Plymouth’s many steep banks.

The teams began their grass cutting schedule last week and between now and October, will do nine sweeps of the city’s green spaces with an extra two cuts in 2018, cutting around 5 million square meters of grass each time.

Councillor Mike Leaves, Cabinet Member for Streetscene and the Environment, said: “We must do all that can be done to keep our parks and green spaces looking lush and inviting. As we know, our climate is ever-changing with summers becoming warmer and wetter so our teams must have the tools they need to do their job efficiently. This fleet of new equipment represents a significant investment in this and I look forward to seeing them in use throughout the summer.”

Older machines can be costly to run and maintain and when there are break downs, disrupt the grass cutting schedule so the decision to invest in the new equipment was made in a bid to ensure that grass cutting runs as smoothly as possible.

Full list of new equipment

• 3 x Triple deck gang mowers: Used to cut large open spaces and are pulled behind our tractors. They cut at double the RPM of our old gang mowers.
• 9 x Ride on grass cutter: Offer a better quality of cut and can cut longer grass easier. These will include Flail decks which attach to the above and can cut brush and wildflowers meadows.
• 14 x grass cutters: Able to cut on banks at pace and produces a better quality of cut and replaces antiquated equipment.
• 10 x Leaf and litter blowers: Up to date equipment that is easier to use.
• 13 x Strimmers: Up to date equipment that is easier to use.
• 4 x Pedestrian mowers: These narrow grass cutters are for use in smaller areas in the cemeteries. They leave little arisings and can cut close to obstacles without causing any damage
• 2 x Flail pedestrian mower: The main use for these flails are to cut and bail the wildflower meadows on areas that tractors cannot access.
• 8 x Hedge cutters: Up to date equipment that is easier to use.