Salt, sand and Parkdale lawns
Stand on the foreshore at Parkdale on a windy afternoon and you understand the lawns here. The south-westerly comes straight off the water, carries salt with it, and the sandy soil under most of the suburb drains almost as soon as the rain stops. Grass on the beach side of Parkdale dries out fast, browns at the tips on the exposed corner of a block, and thins if it is cut too hard. Couch is the grass that copes best, and it rewards a regular, moderate cut far more than an occasional short one.
Behind Como Parade and towards the railway line the blocks are a little more sheltered and the mix shifts to kikuyu and buffalo. Kikuyu grows quickly from October and will walk straight into garden beds and over the kerb unless the edging keeps up with it. I adjust the cutting height to the grass and the season, keep the blades sharp, and edge on each visit so the lines stay honest.
Townhouses, big backyards and everything between
Parkdale is changing street by street. Older brick homes on generous blocks sit next to new townhouses with small courtyards, and the two need different handling. On a big backyard the job is a proper mow, straight edges, and a clear path and driveway. On a courtyard lawn the detail is everything: a neat edge against the paving, no clippings left on the deck, the small strip of grass out the front kept in step with the rest. I do both regularly and set up the visit to suit the block rather than running the same routine everywhere.
Hedges, garden beds and clean-ups
Most of what people in Parkdale mean by a gardener comes down to three things: hedges kept to a line, garden beds kept weeded and mulched, and the occasional proper clean-up when a garden has got away. Coastal hedges here lean on the tough plants, westringia, coast rosemary and lilly pilly, and they are at their best clipped a little and often. I trim them back to a clean face, keep the tops level, and take all the trimmings away. Beds are weeded by hand and the edge against the lawn kept sharp, so the whole front of the house reads as looked after.
For a garden that has been left for a season, a one-off clean-up brings it back to the point where a regular round can hold it there.
Regular rounds or a one-off visit
A regular round can be weekly, fortnightly or monthly. Fortnightly suits most Parkdale lawns through the growing season, with monthly over winter when the grass slows down. You do not need to be home, and you deal with the same person each time. One-off visits are welcome too, whether it is a tidy before visitors arrive or a catch-up after a holiday.
Based up the road in Black Rock
Wilson's Mowing is a one-man business based in Black Rock 3193, a short run up Beach Road from Parkdale. I quote the job and I do the job. Every job is fully insured with $10 million public liability cover, I work Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, and there are 60 Google reviews with a 5.0 rating if you would like to see what other people say. Quotes are free with no obligation. Call 0452 652 494 or use the form below.