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Required: Trim your lawn prior to May's arrival - discover the significance of foregoing May mowing called No Mow May.

Transform Your Lawns into Biodiversity Havens: Forgo Mowing in May, Advocates Say, as Per Lesley Buckingham's Illustrations

Lawn trimming prior to May's arrival is advised due to the significance of No Mow May:...
Lawn trimming prior to May's arrival is advised due to the significance of No Mow May: understanding the reasons behind it.

Required: Trim your lawn prior to May's arrival - discover the significance of foregoing May mowing called No Mow May.

Gardening Season's Back! Here's How to Change Your Mowing Game

There's something magical about the warm weather signaling the arrival of garden season. With regular lawn mowing, you can transform a messy patch into a neat sea of green. But, did you know your mowing habits might be harming the environment?

Enter No Mow May, a campaign by Plantlife encouraging gardeners to forgo mowing in May. It's a revolutionary idea that tackles the loss of UK wildflower meadows and the decline of pollinating insects. Here's why you should give it a try.

Breaking the Mowing Routine

Regular lawn maintenance in spring mainly consists of making sure your mower blades are sharp. But, once spring blooms, it's time to change that routine. May is traditionally the beginning of the mowing season, but Plantlife's 2019 survey of 2,000 gardeners revealed that most of us mow once every two weeks.

Why No Mow May Matters

According to reports, 97% of British wildflower meadows have disappeared since the 1930s. To reverse this trend, Plantlife believes that people's gardens can make a significant impact. Many British pollinating insects, such as the red-shanked carder bee, are in decline. Between 1980 and 2013, every square kilometre in the UK lost an average of 11 species of bee and hoverfly due to the use of insecticides, habitat loss, and a reduction in biodiversity[1].

Mowing Tips for Wildlife

Here's how you can adapt your mowing routine to help foster wildlife in your garden:

  1. Cut Once a Month: Cutting your grass once a month encourages the maximum number of flowers to grow. Aim for three to five centimeters of grass length.
  2. Leave Long Grass Patches: Areas of grass left completely unmown can lead to greater diversity of flowers, providing important nectar sources for insects.
  3. Stimulate Flowering: Some species, such as daisy and bird's foot trefoil, require shorter swards. Cutting them once a month stimulates them to produce more blooms.

The Proof is in the English Countryside

Following the launch of No Mow May in 2019, Plantlife's citizen science experiment showed that changing the way we mow can result in a tenfold increase in the amount of nectar available to bees and other pollinators. Daisies, germander, speedwell, and creeping buttercup saw an increase in growth, with the species that benefited changing each month[1].

The Future of Greener Gardens

Botanist Trevor Dines encourages people to relax their mowing habits, saying, "Instead of a dull monoculture of green concrete, your garden will be thriving and full of interest." Trevor emphasizes the importance of making these changes to help pollinators, "The loss of wildflower meadows means a loss of food source for pollinators, which is one of the key drivers of their decline."

Join the No Mow May Movement

It's easy to get involved in the No Mow May campaign. Register at plantlife.org.uk, leave your mower in the shed from 1 May, throw a tennis ball into a patch of your lawn, mark out a square meter with sticks around the ball, and count and identify the flowers that grow there[1]. Upload your findings to contribute to Plantlife's citizen science experiment.

By taking small steps like these, you can make a big difference for the environment while enjoying a greener, more wildlife-friendly garden.

[1] Data sourced from Plantlife's Impact: No Mow May[2] Data sourced from The importance of pollinators to food security[3] Data sourced from Gardening for wildlife: creating a balanced garden[4] Data sourced from Wildlife Gardening: The Comprehensive Guide[5] Data sourced from Creating A Wildlife Garden

  1. Engaging in gardening during the season brings a sense of magic, as green lawns are transformed from messy patches to neat expanses.
  2. However, regular lawn mowing may contribute to environmental harm, leading to the loss of UK wildflower meadows and a decline in pollinating insects.
  3. To counter this, Plantlife initiated the No Mow May campaign, encouraging gardeners to forego mowing in May to preserve and promote wildflowers and insects.
  4. Adjusting one's mowing routine can foster wildlife in gardens; recommendations include cutting grass once a month, keeping long grass patches, and stimulating flowering for certain species.
  5. The impact of No Mow May was evident in 2019, with an increase in nectar available to bees and other pollinators, followed by growth in daisies, germander, speedwell, and creeping buttercup.
  6. To make a positive environmental impact and create a greener, wildlife-friendly garden, consider joining the No Mow May movement by registering at Plantlife's website, leaving the mower in the shed from 1 May, and contributing to the citizen science experiment.

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