Lawn mowing and garden care on the Bellarine Peninsula
I look after lawns and gardens across the Bellarine, taking in Ocean Grove, Barwon Heads, Drysdale, Clifton Springs and Leopold. You get one written quote before work starts, and the garden is left clean and tidy.
What I do on the Bellarine Peninsula
Everything I do around Geelong, I do out here as well. On the peninsula the steady work is mowing, hedges that take the wind, and mulch that holds moisture through the dry months. Plenty of gardens here belong to holiday homes too. If yours sits empty between stays, I can keep the lawn down, the hedges tidy and the place looking lived in while you are away, on a schedule that suits you.
Two soils, one peninsula
The Bellarine is really two gardens. Down on the coast at Ocean Grove and Barwon Heads you are working in old dune country: sandy ground that drains fast, dries right out in summer and carries salt in the low ground near the salt marshes. Up on the hills through Drysdale, Clifton Springs and Leopold it shifts to a mix of clays, sands and gravels, including the black basalt clay the peninsula's vineyards grow on. That clay cracks open in a dry summer and sits wet through winter.
Rain is modest, roughly 550 to 600 mm a year on the central hills, and most of it falls in winter and spring. So summer care comes down to mulch, deep soaks and the right plants. Sandy beds drink water and lose it. Clay beds shed it, then hold it for weeks. A plan that works at Barwon Heads can fail at Drysdale, and the other way around.
The sand brings one more headache: kikuyu. It runs hard through light soil and creeps into beds and under paths. Deep, clean edges are the fix, and they are worth staying on top of.
Plant for the wind, and check before you cut
Ocean Grove and Barwon Heads face straight into Bass Strait, while the Drysdale and Clifton Springs side takes its wind off Port Phillip Bay. In a front-line spot, soft inland plants can go backwards within a single season. The coastal palette holds on: Moonah, Drooping Sheoke, White Correa, Coast Daisy-bush, Cushion Bush and Silver Banksia. The peninsula even has its own tree, the Bellarine Yellow Gum, a subspecies named for this coast.
Some old favourites are the wrong pick here. Agapanthus, bridal creeper and the shrub sold as Bellarine Pea, which is actually a South African polygala, all jump the fence into the coastal reserves. Azaleas and camellias sulk in the alkaline sand. My guide to the best plants for Geelong covers what I would plant instead.
On trees, the peninsula sits with the City of Greater Geelong. Since September 2025, removing or lopping many trees over 5 metres tall needs a planning permit, and the coastal and landscape overlays common out here can add rules of their own. Check with the council before you cut. If I quote tree work and something looks like it needs a permit, I will say so before we go any further.
Suburbs I cover on the Bellarine
I take on work right across the peninsula, from the surf side to the bay side. These are the main towns I cover. If yours is not on the list, ask anyway. If it fits a run I am already making, I will fit you in.
- Ocean Grove
- Barwon Heads
- Drysdale
- Clifton Springs
- Leopold
Questions I get about the Bellarine
Do you run regular mowing rounds on the Bellarine?
Yes. I take on regular lawn and garden rounds across Ocean Grove, Barwon Heads, Drysdale, Clifton Springs and Leopold. We set a frequency that suits your lawn and the season, and I keep to it. Green waste always leaves with me.
Will you come out for a one-off job?
Yes. One-off clean-ups, hedge cuts, pre-sale tidies and gutter cleans are all fine. I am based in Geelong, so the peninsula is a short run out for me, and you will hear back the same day when you call or message.
How does quoting work if I am not there?
The usual way is a walk around the garden together, then one written quote. If you are away, text photos of the job to 0452 319 113 and tell me what you want done. I will confirm the details on site before anything starts, and the number you approve is the number you pay.
Tell me about your garden.
Or call
Service area
Geelong and surrounds: the Bellarine, Surf Coast and out to the Golden Plains. See the area pages.