Local organizations are urging people not to take their lawn mowers out of winter storage just yet, to give early pollinators a chance use the few spring plants available to get established.
A sign in front of the Peterborough Unitarian Universalist Church announces that the lawn in front of the church might get a little long this month, as the church participates in the No Mow May movement.
No Mow May is a national conservation movement that encourages people with lawns to let them grow during the month of May, when clover and dandelions are one of the few sources for bees and butterflies as they return from migration and emerge from their winter hives.
Eve Cimino of Keene, a member of the church’s Green Sanctuary Task Force, first brought the idea to the church. She said native gardening and removing invasive are a passion of hers, and she and her husband decided last year to allow their front and back yards to grow out, and seeded it with native wildflowers.
“I’m very aware of the loss of habitat insects and animals are experiencing,” Cimino said. “The biggest thing we can do to directly combat that is take care of our own home environment.”
Church member Dwight Schenk of Rindge said he only heard of the movement when Cimino brought it to the task force, but said he was all for it, not only for the church lawn, but for his own.
“I’m looking at dandelions all over the place as we speak,” Schenk said.
Schenk said getting the mower out in May was rote for him, but said if it helps in a minor way returning pollinators, he’s willing to let the grass get a bit long this month.
“I just have to hope our neighbors forgive the shaggy grass,” Schenk said.
The Harris Center for Conservation in Hancock is also participating in No Mow May, leaving the majority of its grounds unkept this month, with a small section set aside for mowing where the center will host its outdoor activities, according to Science Director Brett Thelen.
Thelen said the Harris Center looked at studies of other communities where residents have adopted No Mow May, and found the evidence that it helped to increase both the number and diversity of pollinators compelling.
Bee City USA, an organization that works to create initiatives within communities to sustain pollinators, particularly bees, by increasing native plants, providing nest sites and reducing the use of pesticides, advises that the traditional American lawn with one type of grass is harmful for bees. In 2020, Appleton, Wisc., an affiliate of Bee City USA, promoted the No Mow May concept, with the City Council agreeing to suspend the town’s weed ordinance for May. More than 435 residents participated in the No Mow May campaign, and Lawrence University conducted research on the impact on pollinators, collecting data on the number of species of flowers and bees found in mowed and unmowed lawns in Appleton.
According to Bee City USA, yards that were unmowed had three times more bee species and five times the amount of bees in general.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service’s Northern Research Station did a study of herbicide-free suburban lawns that mowed at different frequencies throughout the year – every week, every other week and every three weeks – in Springfield, Mass. The study showed mowing every three weeks resulted in more than double the number of flowers, mainly clover and dandelions, and increased diversity of bee species. Mowing every other week resulted in the highest number of bees overall.
“The rationale for this is in early spring aren’t a lot of flowers for them to feed on in May,” Thelen said. “In May, flowers and pollen resources can be scarce on the landscape, especially in urban and suburban landscapes. A lot of bees may be emerging and need those extra food resources. Lawns can grow dandelions, violets, and clover, which are all great resources for bees.”
Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.