Launched four years ago Hackney Homes which works in partnership with the London Borough of Hackney Council is responsible for managing council homes in Hackney. A major part of the not-for-profit organisation’s work is to keep the amenity grass in the borough’s 266 estates in top order. Last year, the decision was taken to switch from mulch mowing to cut and collect in an effort to further improve its grounds care service and to upgrade its Audit Commission accreditation from 2-Star to 3-Star, which is potentially a route to higher Government funding.

The organisation bought nine Etesia ride-on mowers – two Hydro 124DN models and seven BLHP’s – from their dealer P. Tuckwell’s of Colchester and the machines are now in full swing across the borough. Here, each of the two models trims the grass at a housing estate in Shoreditch, just a mile from London’s Liverpool Street station. This site, like all the other Hackney estates gets its grass cut once every ten days by the Hackney homes grounds care team.

“There were requests from residents as it is a cleaner and tidy system, so we needed mowers that picked up the grass,” explained Balavant Barber of Hackney Homes, the non-profit organisation, which works in partnership with the London Borough of Hackney.

“The grass we maintain is definitely looking better already.  The job may be taking a little longer because of the collection of clippings, which we deposit at a recycling depot, but because there is no cutting debris it is better for residents and more satisfying for the grounds care team.”

One of the Etesia mowers’ safety facilities – which influenced their purchase – is the protection of the twin blades by two shear bolts. This helps avoid major damage if there is hidden object impact.    

The two larger 25 horsepower 124D machines with the facility for front fitting of hydraulically controlled attachments have multi-purpose adaptability. Leaf clearing in autumn and snow clearing in winter are also on Hackney Homes job sheet, so this added to the mower’s appeal.

The Hydro 100D features a tight 1.1 metre radius turning circle, which Hackney Homes operatives find useful for work on the more restricted sites and for negotiating municipal fixtures like lamp posts. There is no rear axle, so the way is clear for ejection of cuttings.

Both of the new mower models now in use across Hackney have 600 litre grass boxes, which take a lot of filling. They each feature hydraulic lift emptying up to a maximum height of 1.80 metres.

One of the South of England’s major year-round attractions, Marwell Wildlife in Hampshire, is poised ready to deal with a repeat of last year’s record breaking winter. The 140-acre site, which is home to more than 180 different species and acclaimed for its conservation work, welcomes nearly half a million visitors each year. It managed to stay operational throughout weeks of snow and ice 12 months ago thanks very largely to the acquisition of a snow blade attachment to one of its mowers.

Lance Ingram, Head of Grounds and Plants for the charity, says M & S Turf Maintenance Machinery of Southampton supplied them with a snow blade to fit its Etesia 124D ride-on mower at very short notice when the weather took a hold last year.

“It did a really good job – absolutely brilliant,” said Lance, whose department looks after Marwell’s Landscape and Grounds maintenance.

“We were able to keep much of our pedestrian areas and car parks pretty clear. Visitors were able to get around the park safely, even when the snow was at its worst. Visitor income is vital to Marwell’s conservation work both here in the UK and abroad, so we wanted to be absolutely ready for any sudden cold snap by fitting our Etesia snow blade ahead of the busy school holiday period. We do now have another larger vehicle -mounted snow plough, but the Etesia is one that is so useful in clearing the tighter areas close to visitor facilities.  

Marwell has two Etesia 124D mowers and they are on duty around the calendar – snow or no snow – fine cutting lawns and amenity grass areas. One of the mowers is also appropriately fitted with an all-weather cab. Lance says that grass cutting at Marwell is carried out either before opening at 10.00am. His team of seven ground persons work in close collaboration with the keepers to ensure the maximum welfare of the 1200 plus animals.

Lance, who has been at Marwell for five years, says he is looking to add at some point in the future of other Etesia attachments and was particularly impressed by the scarifying heads he saw demonstrated at SALTEX in September last year.

Last winter saw much of the UK grind to a halt by the worst weather seen for over 30 years, seeing  local authorities, landscapers and grounds maintenance professionals struggle to keep roads, paths and car parks safely open for users.

To help keep these areas open this winter, Etesia UK has announced a series of ‘Winter Warmer’ offers on their popular Hydro 100E (MVEHHN), Hydro 100D (BPSP), Hydro 80 (MKHP2), Hydro 100D (BLHP & BPHP), Hydro 124DN and Hydro 124DX four-wheel-drive models with up to £5,000 of savings.

The versatility of Etesia’s ride-on mowers can be enhanced with a range of utility attachments such as a cab, snow blade, salt/sand spreader or brush.

All Etesia accessories are easily fitted to most ride-on models in the range. The front-mounted snow-blade can also be angled left or right and lifted when travelling between sites.  

For safety on icy surfaces, wheel chains which ensure grip to avoid skidding and keep the machine moving in falling and settled snow are also available. The easy-to-attach trailed sand/salt spreader is especially useful on icy roads, walkways and other exposed sites.

One organisation who has recognised the benefit of increasing the versatility of their ride-on mower is Birmingham’s Botanical Gardens and Glasshouse. Malcolm Taylor, who took on the role as Maintenance and Ground Services Manager last summer had been re-assessing the best means of keeping all the grassed and the hard surface in top order at all times.

Previously, grass cutting had been carried out by a triple mower, but this was in need of costly repair, and hard surface maintenance was always a labour intensive business. A single-source unit seemed to be the logical choice and after looking at what machines there were on the market he opted for an Etesia set-up because it offered everything the Gardens needed for surface maintenance.

“The snow plough was in action just after purchase, clearing walkways of the snow earlier this year, and throughout the winter months the brush attachments were in daily use keeping the Garden’s terraces and walkways free of leaves and debris.”

Developed for tough working applications and packed with advanced features for ease of use, Pellenc’s new Excelion brushcutter, distributed in the UK by Etesia UK, is the ideal maintenance tool for professional landscapers and contractors.

Featuring a brand new handlebar design and longer shaft, the Excelion is a unique tool which combines a brush and grass cutter in one: the multifunction head developed by Pellenc can be fitted with either the Pellenc wire made from a very high resistance polyamide or a wide range of metal blades adapted to your work. 

Further benefits include an ergonomically designed adjustable D-handle, flexible head and telescopic system featuring new soft anti-vibration grips for optimal comfort and increased safety. The brushcutter is exceptionally well balanced making it easy to use at varying angles in ditches, on slopes or steep inclines for added versatility. Two times lighter than some petrol brushcutters, the Excelion makes grass brushing and cutting much easier.

The 4-speed selector, exclusive to Pellenc has the durability to withstand tough conditions and demanding projects making it easier to adapt to the vegetation: slow speeds are recommended for edges and urban areas for example. Silent, rapid and extremely lightweight, the Excelion is the new brush cutter for professionals.

As with all other Pellenc products, the Excelion uses the ultra high capacity technology of the ultra lithium battery and guarantees non-polluting, odourless operation with quick start-up and a record operating range.

National Trust properties in south Somerset have trimmed energy costs, time and noise as well as hedges this year. The four properties in this area of Trust administration switched to battery power in 2011 for the significant hedge cutting and topiary work that has to be undertaken annually and the results are significant. It is the Trust’s Greener Garden Fund for more ecologically sound outdoor upkeep of its properties that aided the purchase of Pellenc Helion lithium-ion battery-powered trimmers supplied by machinery specialists Bigwood and Partners of Taunton.

Lytes Cary Manor at Charlton Mackrell near Somerton dates back to the 14th century and was the home of medieval herbalist Henry Lyte, notable for his plant directory Lytes Herbal. Restored from dereliction 100 years ago by Sir Walter Jenner, its much-visited garden is a combination of outdoor ‘rooms’, topiary features, statues and herbaceous borders.

Damien Mitchell, the gardener-in-charge there, has two and half miles of hedging all told, predominantly of yew, hornbeam, beech, lime and privet. Work to keep them trim begins in mid-May and finishes in late October, which is peak visiting time and before now, when petrol or electric trimmers were used, this presented Damien with a variety of health and safety issues as well as user and visitor discomfort. Noise levels and trailing wires were the main offenders.

This year for the first time he used a Pellenc Helion hedge cutter with back-pack battery unit which drastically cut noise, user fatigue, and detrimental effect on passing visitors. These plusses alone would tick boxes in the Trust’s Greener Garden checklist, but a further bonus at Lytes Cary Manor is that power for the batteries comes from an on-site solar panel.  Three to four hours of free charging is enough for a day’s operation, so Damien’s cutting work is about as energy efficient as you can get and with zero carbon emission.

Topiary on yew close to the Manor itself and the shaping of 12 Apostles, a feature common to many large estate gardens of the time, also in yew, is a skillful trimming task that has to be conducted twice yearly. These are 100-year old features that demand serious attention and work on them this year has been noticeably more efficient, safer and quieter, reports Damien, who has up to four permanent gardening staff working at the property and about 50 volunteers.

“The new Pellenc trimmer is a lot more user friendly and the environmental advantages are considerable,” he says. “We are a lot more comfortable doing the work when visitors are here because they are not inconvenienced at all.”

Damien’s counterpart at nearby Tintinhull Garden, Tanis Roberts, has just volunteer support for her work at this 17th century manor house. Created last century, the gardens there have over 25,000 visitors each year and feature secluded lawns, pools and colourful borders, plus an attractive kitchen garden, woodland walk and orchard. Focal point is the Eagle Court and adjacent Middle Garden, characterised by striking boxwood domes along a central path.

Every year Tanis has the job of cutting the sixteen 100 year old plus Box domes. Until last year this was done by hand shears, which was laborious and would take about a month to complete. Tanis, who has been in charge of gardening at Tintinhull for nearly 20 years, had previously tried petrol trimmers, but the vapour caused scarring of leaves and the noise was an annoyance to visitors. She had also tried electric trimmers, but says she didn’t get a clean cut because the reciprocal action of the cutters chewed the edges of the leaves badly and caused similar unsightly browning. Hence a return to hand cutting, but with a number of different individuals using hand shears uniformity was hard to achieve, and this is essential with the domes, which are a precious heritage.

The Pellenc battery-powered trimmers she now uses have made it so much easier to achieve a smooth cut line, according to Tanis.

“There is no scorch and the risk of error is far less,” she says. “Switching to this equipment has saved me three weeks work – easily.”

Tintinhull is effectively a ‘subsidiary’ of Montecute House, another of the Trust’s south Somerset properties. Tanis borrows the Pellenc trimmers from there on a weekly basis and has them from Monday to Wednesday. At present she doesn’t have a solar panel facility, but plug-in powering of the battery overnight is sufficient for a day’s trimming.

“The back pack makes using them during visiting hours so much easier”, she adds. “You can easily step aside if need be, and visitors far from being inconvenienced by what you are doing, show a lot of interest in such quiet trimming.”

Tanis has also used the new trimmers on a bay arch in the gardens, also previously cut by hand shears. Bay is very tough to cut and you get a lot of chewed edges. The Pellenc trimmer made lighter work of it and with better results, she reports.  Another job, tedious with hand shears, the trimming of lower box edging around beds in the kitchen garden, has now been completed for the first time using the back-pack trimmers with very pleasing results.

So keen on the Pellenc trimmers is Tanis that she hopes to have her own for the 2012 cutting season at Tintinhull.