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.
The maintenance we can provide to nature strips is limited to a once-off slash of grass or vegetation where a complaint is raised and an inspection confirms that a fire hazard or vision obstruction exists.
We encourage property owners to recognise the value of nature strips and to take pride in maintaining them. As such, residents often choose to do additional landscaping and or maintenance on nature strips.
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. Most main roads are managed and maintained by the Department of Transport (formerly VicRoads).
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, the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA), Parks Victoria 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.
During spring, grass growth accelerates and, despite our best efforts, it can be difficult to keep up. This means some areas may have longer grass than usual during spring and early summer.
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, the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA), Parks Victoria and Melbourne Water.
Can Council mow my nature strip?
- Outside the annual Fire Slash program, Council is unable to provide regular maintenance on nature strips outside privately owned properties due to the enormity of the task and associated costs.
- We are required to provide equitable and consistent service to all property owners and therefore are unable to provide general or regular maintenance, regardless of the resident’s circumstances.
- If concerns are raised about a potential fire hazard or significant vision obstruction, Council will inspect the area and, if deemed a hazard by our officers, a once-off slashing of the grass would be programmed. Grass may be deemed a fire hazard or vision obstruction by our officers where it is:
- extremely long and very dry and ground moisture levels are very low; or
- extremely long and located adjacent to an intersection where vision is confirmed to be unreasonably obscured for road users.
I am elderly - can Council assist with mowing my nature strip?
We are required to provide equitable and consistent service to all property owners and therefore are unable to provide general or regular maintenance, regardless of the resident’s circumstances.
You may qualify for other government assistance such as under My Aged Care if you meet the criteria. Further information can be found here: https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/
What if my nature strip is damaged?
Damaged by vehicles parking
Due to the ongoing nature of damage to nature strips where vehicles are parking, we are unable to repair this sort of damaged.
You may wish to lodge a request for our Community Safety team to patrol for illegally parked vehicles. You can do this by calling us on 1300 368 333or by emailing mail@yarraranges.vic.gov.au.
Sunken areas around paths and kerbs
If the path or kerb is newly laid, we would refer the repair to the contractor who completed the works.
Damaged by another authority (e.g. Telstra, Ausnet, Australia Post)
This damage needs to be reported directly to the relevant authority for repair.
Affected by surface tree roots
Please lodge a request for us to inspect the tree and root base. You can do this by calling us on 1300 368 333 or by emailing mail@yarraranges.vic.gov.au.
We know that tree roots can disturb nature strip surfaces, however the benefits of trees in our landscape mean that some damage and disturbance is accepted. A healthy tree would not be removed in response to surface roots on a nature strip.
I have weeds on my nature strip – can Council remove them?
Due to the large area of the Yarra Ranges, Council’s weed removal program is limited.
Works are rigorously assessed, prioritized and reviewed each year according to the following criteria:
- Are weeds obstructing traffic along roads and footpaths, causing road safety issues.
- Does the site support high conservation values? (Roadside conservation value surveys, weed mapping data analysis and staff inspections identify the conservation value and level of weed threat to sites).
- Should fuel reduction works be carried out in line with Yarra Ranges Council’s Annual Fire Management Plan? (This plan is developed in conjunction with the CFA and DEECA).
- Are noxious weeds present on the site? All land managers including private residents are obliged under the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994 to control noxious weeds.
- Is the site close to or shares a boundary with a significant environmental asset such as a National Park, Creek or a Council bushland reserve?
- Will weed control on the site complement the works of a volunteer group or another land management agency?
Information on weeds and weed management can be found on our website to help you self-manage weed.
Weed Wipeout vouchers are available to help with the cost of disposing of some targeted weeds.
Some target weeds, such as blackberry, English ivy up trees and a selection of high-threat noxious weeds can be treated under our weed management program, subject to seasonal resources and capacity.
Large woody weed removal works, such as Sycamore maple and Holly, can be carried out under our fuel reduction program to reduce fire risk (and weed threat), subject to seasonal resources and capacity.
When will my road get slashed?
Roadsides scheduled for slashing will be done as soon as ground conditions allow, according to priority.
The schedule is carefully planned to make the best use of resources, so unfortunately, we are unable to send crews to specific areas in response to individual requests. Doing so would slow down the overall program and impact our ability to maintain high-use areas.
What if I’m worried about snakes?
We prioritise mowing in high-use areas such as walking trails to help improve visibility and reduce the chance of unexpected encounters with snakes. However, snakes are a natural part of the environment in the Yarra Ranges, especially near water sources. They are most active from October to April, so awareness during this season is well placed.
Snakes are protected under law and play an important role in the ecosystem. If you see a snake on a roadside, please remain calm and keep children and pets at a safe distance. In most cases, snakes will move away once they sense people nearby.
Our Parks teams manage a very busy mowing program across our large municipality. The schedule is carefully planned to make the best use of resources, so unfortunately, we’re unable to send crews to specific areas in response to individual requests, including those related to snake concerns. Doing so would slow down the overall program and impact our ability to maintain high-use areas.
What if I’m worried about bushfire?
During spring, grass growth accelerates, and despite our best efforts, it can be difficult to keep up. This means some areas may have longer grass than usual during spring and early summer.
While the grass is green and the ground retains moisture, the risk of fire is greatly reduced. We expect to be able to return our mowing program to schedule well before the grass and ground dries out.
We also run an additional annual fire slash program to reduce fuel loads.
Why didn’t they finish the job?
Parts of the roadside may be too wet. We cut what we can and return when conditions improve.
Different machines may cut different parts of the roadside. For example, our Side-Arm operator may need to cut some areas where access is difficult.
This means that all the cutting may not be done at the same time, but one machine will usually follow the other within a week or so.
Why did they miss some areas?
We are required under legislation to protect significant native vegetation, including some grasses. This means that sometimes an area will need to be left when the large machinery comes through.
Why can’t you use smaller or hand-held machinery if the large machinery is too heavy for wet ground?
Large machinery is needed for efficiency. Smaller machinery would delay the program further.