Is No-Mow Might Truly Good for Pollinators?

Lawns, mowed quick, give us house for canine and youngsters to play. Additionally they maintain our neighbors from making complaints to the city authorities or householders’ affiliation. However a closely-cropped garden is a flower-free monoculture. Some organizations are encouraging a “No Mow Might” to permit wildflowers within the grass to bloom—benefiting pollinators—earlier than we begin chopping grass down for the season. 

There’s an enormous caveat price noting right here: Ecological organizations say that No Mow Might doesn’t do a lot for pollinators if all you do is let your grass develop for a month after which get again to your standard garden care. (It could even be unhealthy to your grass.) As a substitute, take into account how one can assist pollinators in your yard with different approaches, like a “sluggish mow summer time.” 

What’s No Mow Might?

Originated by Plantlife within the UK, No Mow Might is described as a motion that goals to “Present a feast for pollinators, sort out air pollution, scale back city warmth extremes, and lock away atmospheric carbon under floor.” 

Plantlife asks folks to pledge to not mow their garden throughout Might, they usually encourage contributors to debate plant variety with their neighbors and on social media. Lawns have taken over areas that have been as soon as meadow, leaving pollinators with fewer flowers to feed on. Folks ought to actually be cultivating gardens and meadows, not simply lawns, the argument goes. No Mow Might is a step towards that. 

Is it truly good to cease mowing your grass in Might? 

In line with most U.S.-based conservation organizations: no. The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation writes in a weblog: “Let’s be sincere, if all you’re doing is letting dandelions and different weeds bloom, that’s not good high quality [pollinator] habitat—and any advantages shall be canceled in case you energy up your mower and restart as if nothing has modified as soon as June arrives. We will’t pat ourselves on the again and say, ‘Yay, we saved the bees.’”

The Bee Lab on the College of Minnesota agrees: “Folks mustn’t take the catch phrase ‘No Mow Might’ actually.” 

Minimal environmental advantages apart, No Mow Might can doubtlessly hurt your grass. Lawns are healthiest once you solely trim off some of their top, so that you don’t wish to let your grass get a foot tall after which chop it right down to nothing. (That end-of-Might lower isn’t good to your mower, both.)

What to do as a substitute of No Mow Might

Conservation organizations recognize the sentiment of No Mow Might, however desire that we channel our power into extra holistic approaches like a Gradual Mow Spring or Gradual Mow Summer time, extending the mission of No Mow Might throughout a complete season.

Listed here are a  few issues that may assist your yard to offer extra meals for pollinators, and extra useful habitat for different residing issues like birds:

• Mow much less usually all through the season, and use a better blade top in your mower. Longer grass retains the soil moist, and the taller mowing top permits small flowers to bloom.

• Plant native and useful flowers in your garden, like clover, selfheal, and violets. 

• Develop a mini-meadow or wildflower backyard that’s separate out of your garden.

• Develop different pollinator-friendly vegetation in addition to simply those that develop in grass. Shrubs, backyard vegetation, and window bins can all contribute.

The Bee Lab additionally factors out that cautious timing of mowing will help, relying on what grows in your yard. For instance, you’ll be able to permit weeds like dandelions to flower, after which mow them earlier than they go to seed. That enables pollinators to go to the flowers, however stops these specific weeds from spreading.