Nature strips provide a buffer between residential dwellings and the road. They are also required for delivery of essential services such as water, electricity and gas.
Council does not have a program for mowing nature strip grass outside private property. Further information regarding maintenance of nature strips can be found in our Nature Strips & Roadside Guidelines.
Want to make some changes to your nature strip? Find information on what you can do on our Nature Strip and Roadside Guideline Summary.
We often mow roadsides at intersections and high traffic areas to improve the safety of our roads and footpaths. We also mow some roadsides around towns, shopping areas and tourist destinations.
Our mowing program runs according to a schedule, however the timing of the mowing is often determined by weather and ground conditions. Particularly wet seasons can result in delays to the mowing program, while we wait for the ground to dry out enough to hold our machinery.
We understand that delays to the program require additional understanding from residents, and our teams will always work to return the program to schedule as quickly as possible.
While Council is responsible for many of the roadsides across the Yarra Ranges, some other authorities also manage fuel reduction works across the municipality, including the Department of Transport (formerly VicRoads), the Department of Environment, Land, Water & Planning (DELWP) and Melbourne Water.
Council’s annual program to reduce potential fuel for bushfires includes mowing of grass in reserves and roadsides between October and January each year. Residents will see an increase in mowing in the lead-up to, and throughout, the fire season.
The Fire Slash Program is our way of getting ready, where we’ll be working to remove vegetation and grass that could become fuel in a grass or bush fire in our reserves and roadsides. This will mean that, should the worst happen and a fire breaks out in the Yarra Ranges, there will be less fuel on public land that could cause a fire to spread.
You can learn more information about this program by visiting our Annual Fire Slash Program page.
Find our when your road will be mowed
Please note: Yarra Ranges has received very significant levels of rainfall over winter and early spring, which has resulted in extensive grass growth. The level of rain fall received has affected the schedule across the municipality, in some cases restricting the ability of machinery to access reserves. Sometimes this can even mean that mowing is completed in stages, even in a small area, as some parts of the reserve or roadside are still too wet to access.
We mow a large number of parks and reserves across the municipality, with mowing frequency dependent on usage of the reserve. All our parks and reserves have been allocated a level of service category, according to the number of amenities in place (playgrounds, paths, seating etc.), and the number of people who use the reserve.
Some of the service categories are:
- Sport park mowing: regularly programmed mowing to support community use of sports fields.
- Social recreation park mowing: regularly programmed mowing to encourage play, social interaction and relaxation.
- Linear park mowing: regularly programmed mowing to link green spaces and support opportunities for walking and riding.
- Landscape reserve mowing: less frequently programmed mowing to allow pedestrian access.
- Conservation reserve mowing: Council is required under legislation to protect significant native vegetation, including some grasses. Conservation zones are mowed or slashed approximately twice per year (during spring and late summer), to allow seed drop of native grass species for conservation, and to reduce the spread of exotic (or weedy) grasses.
Our mowing program runs according to a schedule, however the timing of the mowing is often determined by weather and ground conditions. Particularly wet seasons can result in delays to the mowing program, while we wait for the ground to dry out enough to hold our machinery.
We understand that delays to the program require additional understanding from residents, and our teams will always work to return the program to schedule as quickly as possible.
While Council is responsible for many of the parks and reserves across the Yarra Ranges, some other authorities also manage fuel reduction works across the municipality, including the Department of Transport (formerly VicRoads), the Department of Environment, Land, Water & Planning (DELWP) and Melbourne Water.