this post was submitted on 14 Jul 2024
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UK Nature and Environment

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Gardeners are being urged to mow ‘uneven’ strips into their lawns this summer for a stark reason.

No Mow May is long since finished and gardeners across the UK have been breaking out the lawnmowers through various times in June and July - at leat, when the torrid wet weather has allowed.

But the ‘catch all’ approach of just marching onto the lawn and mowing the whole thing to one length is soon to be a thing of the past.

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[–] [email protected] 38 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (3 children)

This mixture of different lengths is the best thing for the environment outside of No Mow May because it gives different insects different advantages, creating a mixture of wildlife far removed from stale monocultures.

...

Insect populations are down by as much as 60 to 80 percent in the UK in the past 20 years, according to studies, so anything we can do in our gardens to give them a helping hand is much needed for the future of food security and key pollinators in the food chain.

Personally I think the last part has little to do with cities and more to do with what must be pesticides in farming.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 month ago

Shhh, we need to blame the individual land owners so no change will happen.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Constant use of broad spectrum pesticides that persist in he environment for months or even years. It has never been a good idea.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago

They they invented gmo and instead of doing anything useful created seeds resistant to roundup so that they can use even more of it!

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago

Just like "reduce, reuse, recycle" it's yet another tactic to absolve industry by shifting the blame to individual "personal responsibility."

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 month ago

No mow may, it's the equivalent of inviting guests and kicking them out as soon as their bags are unpacked.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

I already do this but mostly I just hate the trim work. Give the bugs the borders and they seem to leave me alone.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago

I'm glad some municipalities in the Netherlands started doing this a few years ago. Near intersections they cut it short so people can see other cars and bicyclists approaching. But near the woods and not near intersections they let it grow for a while and don't cut it to the ground.