If youB次元官网网址檙e reading this, chances are youB次元官网网址檝e heard about the #NoMowMay movement on social media and in eco-conscious circles these past few years.
Started in the United Kingdom, the call for homeowners to abstain from mowing their lawns during the month has spread to other countries, including the U.S.
The intention is admirable: Let your grass and weeds grow and bloom to provide food and shelter for essential pollinators like bees and butterflies early in the season, when such necessities may be scarce.
Frankly, I think itB次元官网网址檚 a terrible idea.
Some of those pollinators you set out to protect will likely get shredded up with the first mow of the season. Grass will no doubt get shaded by tall weeds, which can lead to fungal diseases. And weeds and invasive plants that take hold during the month wonB次元官网网址檛 simply disappear once the mowing commences. That might lead people to apply chemical pesticides they wouldnB次元官网网址檛 otherwise use.
And what about rodents, snakes and other undesirables that also will likely avail themselves of the shelter?
Perplexed by the seemingly runaway-train popularity of the now-annual event, I called Tamson Yeh, turf specialist with the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County in New York. B次元官网网址淚s it me?B次元官网网址� I asked.
B次元官网网址淚 think itB次元官网网址檚 a terrible idea, too,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 such a nice slogan, but letting the grass grow high and allowing it to do its thing, and then suddenly mowing it back is really counterproductive.B次元官网网址�
Yeh sees the movement as a B次元官网网址渇eel-good, stop-gap measure, because if you want to have an impact, ,B次元官网网址� not merely temporary housing.
B次元官网网址淏ees tell each other where the food is, and pollinators (when they discover an unmown lawn) will remember to come back to it again and again,B次元官网网址� Yeh said. B次元官网网址淭hen on June 1st, when the food disappears, itB次元官网网址檚 not good for them.B次元官网网址�
Hibernating insects have memories that span not only from day to day but from year to year, Yeh said. So she recommends planting early blooming shrubs, trees and plants to establish a permanent food source they can remember and rely on as adults when they emerge from dormancy.
Other problems with the practice, Yeh noted, include B次元官网网址渃onfusing insects when the grass is suddenly low again. That gives predators the opportunity to take advantage of them.B次元官网网址�
ThereB次元官网网址檚 also the potential to disturb a nest of bunnies when mowing, she said, calling the discovery B次元官网网址渢he most horrible experience you can have.B次元官网网址�
An all-or-nothing approach would be better. If you really want to make a difference, consider or . Both will provide permanency for birds and pollinators while , which frankly, has no redeeming value aside from subjective aesthetics, anyway.
When planting for beneficial insects, Yeh advises creating a corridor or path of pollen- and nectar-rich plants for migratory pollinators to travel along instead of spacing plants far apart.
Postponing fall cleanup until spring, which spawned another movement called #LeaveTheLeaves, will create safe havens for pollinators to lay their eggs and hibernate within. To allow time for them to emerge from dormancy, .
For those set on letting their lawns go wild this month, Yeh cautions that B次元官网网址渁llowing grass to go to seed will kill it,B次元官网网址� so remove seedheads if they form.
ItB次元官网网址檚 also important to reintroduce mowing gradually.
B次元官网网址淭he best height for grass is 3 inches tall, but if youB次元官网网址檙e mowing it down from 5 or 6 inches, do it over several sessions,B次元官网网址� she advised, adding that cutting grass by more than one-third of its height at one time can cause it to go into shock.
The gradual approach B次元官网网址渁lso will give insects a chance to realize itB次元官网网址檚 not a good place for them anymore,B次元官网网址� she said. Hopefully, theyB次元官网网址檒l take the hint and move on to safer spaces.
B次元官网网址擩essica Damiano writes about gardening for The Associated Press
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