Growing season in full swing for Taupō lawns

Taupō District Council team lead reserve ranger Tracey Woodcock on the job. Photo / Supplied

Plenty of rain and bursts of sunshine means lawns in the Taupō and Tūrangi districts are springing up as fast as municipal mowers can cut them down.

For the average resident, spring means dusting off the mower and spending a morning pushing it around the garden.

For the reserve ranger team at the Taupō District Council, mowing is more of a military operation. That’s because they have a total of 973 hectares to get through - the equivalent of 1620 rugby fields.

Tracey Woodcock is the Taupō District Council’s team lead reserve ranger and spends most of her week out mowing the reserves and gullies. She says things really kick off around this time of year.

“It’s like the grass is on steroids, so we’re working hard to try and make sure it gets cut, and that we’re doing a good job of what we’re doing and adhering to our levels of service.

“We use a mowing app which has each area and the frequency it needs to be mowed at. When an operator mows an area, they log the date they did it and note any hazards. The app lets us know whenever an area is due for a mow, or overdue, and marks it as a priority.”

But the planning starts long before they hop on the mowers.

Andrew Moore, the council’s parks manager for open spaces, says rangers plan their annual leave around the slower-growing periods of the year, so that they’re ready to hit the ground mowing in time for the busy holiday season.

“The reserves are broken up into runs and sequenced.

“We work to the Recreation Aotearoa Levels of Service as a guide, as do many councils throughout New Zealand.

“The aim is to keep grass heights within a range rather than being based on the frequency of mowing.”

The range depends on the area and its use, with town centre reserves cut shortest, and stormwater gullies allowed to grow a bit longer between cuts.

Tracey says locals might notice some areas becoming overgrown at times, but asks for understanding when it comes to how quickly the grass is growing.

“We have a fair amount of grass area, and some spots may take longer to get to, but we are certainly working as fast as possible while ensuring the work is good quality.”

The public can help speed up the team’s work by ensuring they don’t drop litter and pick up after their dogs, says Tracey.

“We get a lot of rubbish that the guys usually pick up before they mow, so that would save us a lot of time.

“We do get a good reaction from people when we’re out working, they love what we do and a lot of them appreciate the hard work and what it looks like afterwards.”