Automower® transforms the grounds of St Michaels

An idyllic getaway with impressive grounds

St Michaels Caravan Park is a small holiday caravan park set in open countryside in West Worcestershire near Tenbury Wells. Park owner Brian Griffiths, credits his three Husqvarna Automower® robot lawn mowers for maintaining the park’s impressive grounds.

The Griffiths family has operated the park, which is set in an old apple orchard on the border of Worcestershire and Herefordshire, since 2008. An idyllic getaway for those seeking golf, fishing and country walks, the 33 static caravan park covers three acres and prides itself on its well-maintained grounds.

When the time came to retire their old ride-on mower Brian made the decision to investigate a new form of mowing. He explains: “Once our previous ride-on mower began to tire, we decided to speak to our good contact at Teme Valley Tractors who recommended investigating Husqvarna Automower® as an alternative. I was aware of the existence of robotic lawn mowers, but I never imagined they could maintain a caravan park’s grounds. They certainly proved me wrong.”

Automower® X-Line was trialled initially

 Following an initial chat with Brian, Husqvarna’s Automower® specialist, Niklas, visited the site to provide a demonstration. After seeing first-hand the performance of Automower® over a one month trial period, Brian placed an order for three robotic lawnmowers, an Automower® 450X and two Automower® 430X.

Top of the range models in the X-line series, both mowers are at the forefront of robotic mowing, smart enough to negotiate the challenges of large and complex lawns, and navigate narrow passages, obstacles, tough terrain and slopes up to 45%. Both Automower® models feature GPS theft tracking as well as a high-pitch alarm which starts when moved and can only be deactivated with the mower’s unique pin code, ensuring additional product security.

Making the decision to move from ride-on to robotic

Brian commented on his move to Automower®: “When we considered the cost of replacing our ride-on mower with a like-for-like replacement, we had to factor in the price of using diesel for seven hours a week, and the annual service on top of that. After seeing the results of the Automower® demonstration, we were completely satisfied that it could do the job and help us in our aim to become ‘greener’ by moving away from diesel. In December 2019 we made the switch to Automower® and purchased three mowers, and still saved half the amount we would have spent on one ride-on mower.

“The installation was really impressive, using approximately three miles of guide wires, which were fitted in just half a day. We originally wondered whether any ground repairs would be needed following the installation, but that wasn’t the case.”

With a significant 8m distance between each caravan, Husqvarna was able to install three Automower® robotics and four guide wires, to ensure full mowing coverage of the caravan park’s three sections. With its automatic charging features, each Automower® finds its way back to its individual charging station, without the need for human intervention.

Truly significant results thanks to Automower®

Brian discussed the benefits of Automower®: “The results we’ve seen from Husqvarna Automower® have been truly significant. Thanks to their low-noise operation, they can run at any point in time, day or night, without causing disruption to the park’s guests. The same goes for its ability to work in all weathers, come rain or shine our three Automower® will be out mowing the lawns.

“One of the biggest benefits we’ve seen is the mower’s cutting system, which trims such small clippings of grass that drop back into the lawn and act as fertiliser. This not only eliminates the need to pick up trimmings, it also helps to improve the quality of our lawns. They’ve never looked better.”

It’s not only Brian who has become a fan of Automower®, his guests and holidaymakers have also taken a shine to the robotics. Brian explains: “Our visitors are spellbound by them! We constantly receive positive comments about our mowers and people are always intrigued and interested to learn more about them. We did worry how pets would react to them, but we’ve only ever had one disgruntled dog, but after a few quick barks he soon got used to them. The mowers have become a part of the St Michaels Caravan Park family, and they’ve even been named after my American grandchildren, Henry, Annabel and Megan. We’re more than happy to welcome visitors to come and see how the mowers operate, as it really is fascinating.”

With the added benefit of Automower® Connect, Brian is able to control his three Automower® from his smart phone. He discussed the technology: “With the Automower® Connect app I can control the mowers from the comfort of my chair. I can keep track of their movement in the map view, check their battery status and change the times they work, all without having to lift a finger. They’ve completely transformed our ground maintenance and we cannot imagine going back to regular mowing.”