The Isle of Wight Council is supporting the national ‘No Mow May’ campaign at several of its sites. This national campaign not only promotes local biodiversity but also aligns with our UNESCO biosphere status. The campaign aims to encourage people to ‘liberate their lawns’ — letting the grass grow will provide a feast for insects and bees, and lock away greenhouse gasses carbon below ground. Natasha Dix, the Service Director for waste environment and planning said:
“By not mowing in May, we support the Biosphere and align with the United Nations’ sustainable development goal of ‘life on land’. This approach aims to protect, restore, and promote the sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, while also halting biodiversity loss. “Furthermore, encouraging biodiversity holds significant importance for our environment. The presence of wild orchids, including the declining man orchid, green-winged orchid, southern marsh orchid, northern marsh orchid, and bee orchid, can brighten up liberated lawns and enhance our natural spaces. “The findings from the ‘Every Flower Counts’ survey conducted nationally revealed that a mere one square meter of a typical lawn harboured 17 daisies, along with a sprinkling of buttercups, dandelions, and other native species. “The urgency lies in the threat to the world’s bee population. By allowing lawns to bloom, even for just a month, we actively support our local bees and contribute to the broader biodiversity structures that play a critical role in maintaining balance. I encourage everyone to participate in this meaningful endeavour. Let’s unleash the power of wildflowers.”
For safety reasons, the council will continue to mow roadside verges throughout May and a number of outdoor spaces that serve sport and recreation activities. However, the council will be letting some areas return to their natural state throughout the month. In 2023, ‘No Mow May’ saw more than 7000 people pledged to put their lawnmowers away during May – an increase of more than 30% on 2022. And 90% of those who took part committed to mowing less frequently throughout the summer and beyond. This impressive legacy is providing a lifeline for our wild plants by giving them the time and space to bloom. For more information about No Mow May, visit: https://www.plantlife.org.uk/campaigns/nomowmay/
Let us hope the smaller ‘law unto themselves’ local councils actively embrace this policy too, but I fear not.
Perhaps if enough people make their wishes known they may listen, but there again…….
The councils are the worst offenders with their regular slashing down of roadside verges whether it’s needed for visibility or not. They could save a fortune by just cutting back the first one metre instead of ruthlessly hunting down and destroying nature as far back as they can go.
So as not to spend any money..most verges along the roads all over grwn..need to trim back along milly that weed stuff every where..
Didn’t take long for then
Are they prepared to come and cut my lawn in June when it will be like a hay meadow?
Tell Island Roads then, Wasted verges of wild flowers with no safety issues just so walkers can keep off road. Anyone who watches knows walkers keep to the road so pointless. These are mainland urbanites dictating Island policy.
Exactly, perfectly put , totally agree with you!
Is that why they were out in force cutting them all down during April, by May they would all be cut down anyway. Lying council again. Maybe they cut them back so Jerk Jordan can park on them and abuse members of the public as they walk by his lords**t.
Align with the United nations?
I hope not, do your research, biggest bunch of criminals going!
Should be a regular occurance, they always manage to slaughter the grass verge and hedges just in time for the Festival.
Where’s Bob when you need him? I’m sure he’d have something to say for or against this (whichever one will bring in more votes).
If a photo ops is agreed PopUp Bob then he will rock up ..
Another gimmick by IWC Hedgerows and roadside borders haven’t been touched in years .in my area . RTA’s are common as seeing what’s coming down the roads Including the Lycra Clubs .. accidents are frequent .. I will continue to do what I can to improve road users visibility to see each other before a fatal accident occurs.. once again IWC have a low interest in our safety .. but support gimmicks like no mow May, Beryl Bikes an scooters the list goes on .. l
What a load of ***’, it’s just given the council a perfect excuse not to do their job of maintaining verges. Next will be that it’s so over grown they can’t cut it
Leaving grass to it’s own devices does not create biodiversity. Quite the opposite; it allows the dominant weed to take over, killing all else. Regular mowing allows a variety of (pollen-bearing) plants to thrive in harmony. Not all plants are tall with pretty petals. Worse still is the council’s policy of cutting grass in residential areas too late in the spring and leaving a thatch of long cuttings all over the grass, which turns to slime and kills everything beneath it. All that promotes is scruffy environments. Total misunderstanding of the buzzword ‘rewilding’. The reality is that ‘no mow May’ is just a cost cutting exercise.
Ah, but it does make them feel virtuous. You only have to look around this island to see acres and acres of ‘left to nature’ meadows. It is total hogwash to say the little green patch at the average home will make any difference.
I totally agree that this is a cost cutting measure by councils. Then, in June, we can expect open spaces to be cut down and the heaps left to rot in situ, and blow about everywhere, making a total mess.
I drove through Upper Ventnor today and saw council workers strimming through a beautifully flowering grass verge that was not impending the sight for motorists and was not upsetting pedestrians either.
What rubbish, so let grass grow for one month, insects and other small wildlife move in trying to breed thinking they are safe – only to be brutally splatted and shredded by my strimmer in June. Why May?. Council will try anything to get out of what we pay for. I have a number of areas in garden that’s over grown with bramble/stinging nettle/ thistle and wild flowers and a large overgrown pond as well,all of which is great for wildlife. So I will be mowing the lawn.
nothing changes just gives them a genuine excuse to not mow
Why don’t they mind their own business.
Some of us are paying over £100.00 a year to have our Garden Waste
taken away, now they don’t want to collect it in the month of May.
Do we get a reduction in our bill?
So.Council did this out of kindness?
Think not just about saving money
Yet another piece of useless rhetoric from the poser brigade or the do nothing lot ,let’s hear it for the let’s keep things tidy and neat but cherish our wild life whist doing so .
What say you .
Although this sounds like great idea “It must help the environment” so it must be good it also generals an excuse for councils across the country to have a month off of doing these services. Note: still charging you council tax to do these services 12 months out of the year. Any some cases some of the areas that dont need moved are fine however this turns out to be places which cause visibility issues (And no the council wont rush to correct these unless complained about) and can also create damage. This also causes issues with other pests such as rats and ticks which are just starting to come out. Fire hazards can be an issue. So before you decide No mow may is great idea its better to find websites that have other methods:P