Let it Grow – Don’t Mow

While most of us look forward to spring, very few look forward to mowing the lawn. It’s one of those repetitive tasks that can get in the way of enjoying our gardens.

This year why not mow less? Less can mean less often or leaving a patch of lawn uncut all season. We’re not asking you to turn your lawn into an untidy patch of grass but we would like to encourage you to manage at least some of your lawn in ways that help wildlife to flourish.

Your “No Mow Zone” can be large or small, but for best results we’d suggest you leave an area of at least one square metre uncut. Choose a sunny spot and avoid areas where you regularly walk on the grass.

Converting a patch of lawn into a mini meadow is one of the easiest and most effective ways to encourage wildlife into your garden. Patches of long grass encourage different wildflowers to grow, help insects to thrive, create feeding opportunities for birds, as well as providing shelter for amphibians and small mammals.

Bradford Council Contacts

If you would like to ask Bradford Council to leave grass that they mow uncut the contacts are:-
Contacts at Bradford Council (CBMDC): Keith Mitchell, Assistant Area Parks and Landscapes Manager based in Ilkley, keith.mitchell@bradford.gov.uk, Tel 01943 436221 Mobile 07582 101933

Dave Priestley, CBMDC Parks Manager, david.priestley@bradford.gov.uk. Dave is Keith’s line manager. It is better to contact Keith in the first instance.

Insects are in nearly every food chain and pollinate over 90% of flowering plants. Their numbers are plummeting. Help insects thrive in Ilkley by welcoming them into your garden.

If you can’t bear the thought of not cutting the grass all season, even in just a small area, then try one of these strategies:

Adjust the settings on your mower so you leave the grass slightly longer between cuttings
Mow less often – switch from a once weekly to a once fortnightly regimen
Don’t mow during May. See https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/about-us/news/no-mow-may-how-to-get-ten-times-more-bees-on-your-lockdown-lawn

For advice on getting starting, ideas for bulbs and plants to put in your wild area and links to further useful advice see:-
Getting Started

If you’ve tried this already and have a story or photos to share, please send them to saynotomow@climateactionilkley.org.uk

If you’re going to try it for the first time this year, do let us know how you get on, especially what worked and what didn’t. We’ll add some of your stories to the website so, even if it’s a work in progress, we’d love to hear from you via saynotomow@climateactionilkley.org.uk

Mixed wildflowers in uncut grass