Nottingham City Council has a new tool in its tool-shed which is a cut above the rest – a ‘Spider Mower’ which is to keeping grassy banks neat and tidy across Nottingham.

Hundreds of grass banks in neighbourhoods around the city are difficult to cut, because normal ride-on mowers can’t get up them as they are liable to tip over – risking the safety of the operator.

The remote-controlled ‘Spider Mower’ is designed for the maintenance of sloping banks with tall or short grass. It moves up and down banks of up to 55 degrees via remote control and cuts anything from grass to thick vegetation such as nettles. It has many safety aspects including an alarm warning if the bank is too steep. The climbing ability and safety of operations can also be increased by the installation of a winch. The winch works automatically as it is synchronised with the wheel drive, which ensures high comfort of operation.

To see a video of the Spider Mower, please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOqJM0NO84Q

We have been experiencing some contamination in garden waste bins across the city.

To help us increase recycling rates and keep our costs down, please ensure you do not put household waste in the bin. If there is any rubbish on your lawn when it is cut, please remove this from the garden waste before you put it in the bin.

Further guidance on what can go in the bin and what can not is below.

Please ensure you follow these guidelines as you could risk losing your bin under our new contamination policy if the bin is contaminated:

Yes please

• Grass cuttings
• Hedge clippings
• Twigs and small branches
• Leaves and weeds
• Dead flowers
• Small amounts of potting compost (not bags)

No thanks

• Bagged garden waste
• Any waste that is accepted in your grey bin or brown bin with the grey lid
• Plant pots
• Plastic bags
• Large amounts of soil or grass sods
• Animal waste
• Treated wood
• Bricks and rubble
• Organic food waste