Countax on the lawns at Le Manoir

Oxfordshire’s Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons is one of Britain’s finest hotels and restaurants. It was created by celebrated chef Raymond Blanc OBE who has held two Michelin stars since opening in 1984. Raymond expects only the highest standard throughout the business, be it in the hotel, restaurant or gardens and the latter are in the capable hands of Anne Marie Owens, Head Gardener, who has worked with Raymond for over thirty years.

Belmond Le Manoir grows its own organic produce for the kitchens and it follows the demand for only the finest ingredients extends to selecting the best garden machinery and tools to maintain the gardens and grounds. Regular weddings and events, afternoon teas and garden tours require the lawns to be kept immaculate and Anne Marie’s choice of garden tractor for maintaining them is the British manufactured Countax. Having had one for eight years she knew, when she came to celebrate her 30th anniversary with an upgrade, she would again choose a Countax. This was very much on the grounds of not only keeping the lawns looking flawless with professional striping but also to help keep the hotel and restaurant free of grass clippings.

The Countax has the ability to cut and collect, even in the wet, with contra-rotating blades throwing the grass clippings to the rear of the cutting deck, where spinning brushes sweep them into the collector. A versatile machine, the Countax also drives accessories such as a powered scarifier and can be fitted with a snow plough for winter clearance.  Anne Marie chose a Countax C80 and, with the factory near to Belmond Le Manoir, she was shown over the controls and dashboard features by Iain Lane from the company’s Research and Development team. She was very excited try it out and, with its superior cut and collect, proclaimed it a worthy successor to her previous Countax. Find your nearest dealer at www.countax.co.uk and see what a Countax garden tractor offers for your garden or grounds.

Essex Farmer Strikes it Lucky with a Countax

Countax congratulate Christopher Hawkins of Southminster, Essex on winning a brand new Countax C60 garden tractor.

Christopher had previously owned a Countax and had been very happy with its performance. But, he finally had to retire his machine after 15 years of service. He entered the free prize draw in the hope of winning a new one and was amazed when he succeeded!

Mr Hawkins recollects the phone call he received from Countax notifying him that he had won the garden tractor. “I was ecstatic when I found out I had won the Countax C60. I enter competitions all the time but I have never won anything before. I’m hoping this is just the start of my winning streak!”

Christopher’s wife, Wendy also attended the prize giving. She said, “I’ll be using the Countax around our farm to cut paths along the edges of the fields. I’ll also use it for cutting the lawn and collecting the clippings. Although, by the look on my husband’s face, I’ll be lucky to get behind the wheel when it arrives home!’

The prize was presented by David Sturges, Managing Director of Countax and Gavin Bingham-Wallis, Managing Director of Grasshopper (Horticultural) Ltd.

Can I cut wet grass?

Should you mow wet grass? In an ideal world it would be avoided. However, many people are just too busy to mow their lawn only when the weather is good. If the grass needs mowing, the weekend may be the only opportunity you get - even if it means cutting wet grass.

March and April pose the biggest problem. These two months, in the UK at least, see the greatest grass growth and can often be wet. The wetter it gets, the longer the grass grows. So is it OK to mow wet grass? With the correct equipment... yes it can be.