You’ve heard of dry January, well now it’s No Mow March, and yes, it’s a thing! Granted, it doesn’t relate to alcohol, however No Mow March is also beneficial to people’s health, but in a different way. When folks began realizing that pollinators were slowly, and then more rapidly, starting to fade away, some saw the need for action. An organization in the UK called Plantlife, a wild plant conservation charity, began researching why this was happening. As a result of their research, they created No Mow May. But now No Mo March has been added. Learn how and why this movement originated and how you can keep pollinators alive and well through No Mow March and beyond.
Pollinators’ Threatened Existence
Since 2007, certain bee populations have declined by 80%. Between the years 2000 and 2020, the United States lost 22% of its butterflies. Just as concerning, a recent study showed that 16% of “vertebrate pollinators such as birds and bats” are on the verge of extinction.
This problem is due to many factors including invasive ants such as the Asian Needle Ant, insecticides, pathogens, pollution and climate change. However, this article will focus on the loss of habitat so desperately needed for pollinators’ survival.
Where Pollinators Live and Thrive
Pollinators live in different environments. For instance, honey bees create massive hives in hollows or cavities of trees, rocky cliffs and logs. They need nectar from flowering plants to feed their colony.
Butterflies can thrive in almost any environment including wetlands, grassland, forest and alpine areas. However, butterflies need vegetation, namely flower stalks to thrive and complete their life cycle.
Birds can live mostly anywhere as long as they have shelter and a source of food.
Habitat Destruction
As our world population increases exponentially we, as human beings, need our own habitat for survival. Hence, we start clearing land not only for homes and businesses, but also for fields to grow crops and animals to graze. Certain agricultural practices have proven to be detrimental to our soil and climate. To learn more about a strategy used by Native Americans that can be employed by farmers to improve our soil called polyculture technique click here.
While helping our fellow humans, we are damaging important habitats for our pollinators.
So, What is No Mow March?
It is exactly as stated; you do not mow your lawn throughout the month of March. March was chosen because our climate is warming and what used to be the beginning of moderate temperatures in April is now occurring in March in the northern hemisphere.
No Mow March began as No Mow May, but many of you may not be willing to allow your grass to grow through the month of May. There are many reasons for not participating in this movement. Perhaps you live in a development with an HOA and they enforce a limit as to how long your grass can grow, or it looks unsightly to you and your neighbors, or because it is much more difficult to mow grasses that are extremely tall. In addition to being a welcoming habitat for pollinators, extra long grass can invite unwanted things such as snakes or invasive plants.
Despite these objections, there is a very good reason to allow your lawn to go unmown for awhile…
Allowing your lawn to grow, if even for just a month, will permit natural flowers to grow in your yard creating an area for pollinators to eat and thrive.
If you are still not convinced to refrain from mowing your lawn for awhile, here are some alternatives to consider.
Modification to No Mow March/May
Personally, I like order so I have a hard time with someone telling me to let my lawn grow wild. Even cottage gardens have order! So here are a few other options to consider to help our pollinators.
Get Garden Decor From Etsy
- Yes, mow mow certain areas of your lawn. However, designate a location for No Mow March through No Mow May. Select an area and border it with a very curvy, free flowing perimeter that blends into the aesthetics of your yard. This is very similar to how you would create a berm in your yard without adding flowers, shrubs, or trees. Then mow the area surrounding it. You could even add temporary garden features to make it look more appealing.
- Designate an area for wildflowers. Till some of your lawn and add wildflower seeds that will thrive in your growing zone and type of soil.
- Recreate an area of your lawn as a pollinator garden. There are beautiful flowers and shrubs you can grow to attract bees, butterflies, and birds. If you need help devising a plan for your locale, contact me. I can do it for you virtually.
- Use native flowers in your garden beds.
- Replace all or portions of your lawn with a bee lawn. This type of lawn is lower in maintenance, drought-tolerant, and pollinator-friendly.
- One lighter suggestion is to mow your lawn every 2 weeks instead of every week.
Final Thoughts/ No Mow March-May
Yes, you may not like the unruliness of an unmown lawn, but if you follow at least one of the suggestions above, you will be doing your part to help our pollinators survive. Life is a little scary now, what with roll-backs on environmental regulations and the impacts of climate change. Nevertheless, we must try to stay positive, move forward, and not lose hope. As gardeners who love nature, we can all do our part to help Mother Earth survive.
I hope you enjoyed this post. Please share it with friends and family and leave a comment below. I’d love to hear from you!
Happy Gardening,
Nina
bestgardeningforbeginners.com
bestgardeningforbeginners@gmail.com
