What is 'No Mow May'? Wildflower-friendly gardening campaign blossoming in popularity, poll shows

It’s almost time for ‘No Mow May,’ Plantlife’s annual wildflower-friendly campaign which encourages gardeners to do more to help nature - by doing less.

New polling for 2024 carried out on behalf of the conservation charity by Opinion Matters has suggested the movement’s message is really starting to cut through. Nearly half (46%) of some 2,000 gardeners with lawns surveyed say they planned to mow it no more than once this coming month - while a further 33% said they would mow once a fortnight or every three weeks.

The polling also hinted at a broader attitude change, with nearly three-quarters (73%) believing that leaving lawns unmown for a month or more helps wildlife - while 84% considered it important to look after the environment and support conservation efforts in their everyday lives. But not everyone was onboard, with 17% feeling maintaining a neat appearance to their lawns through regular mowing was more important than supporting wildlife by letting it grow more, and 18% were still planning a weekly cut (and 3% of respondents even more frequently than that).

Plantlife also says more UK councils are also backing the move to stop mowing their verges and green spaces so frequently in May. The charity invited local authorities to pledge their support for the first time this year, with more than 40 signing up to the movement to date.

With the annual event kicking off in just one day’s time, here’s everything you need to know:

What is No Mow May?

Plantlife’s ‘No Mow May’ campaign urges people to leave the mower in the shed for the month to let wild plants “get a head start on the summer”. By allowing wildflowers and even the odd weed to flourish, gardeners are not just saving themselves some effort, but helping support bees, butterflies and other wildlife, the charity says.

Chief executive Ian Dunn told PA support for their campaign has been “blossoming beautifully” since it first began in 2019. Although Plantlife is a British wildlife charity, others - including North American gardeners - have adopted the movement too, “as people recognise the benefits to plants, people, pollinators and planet of mowing less and later for nature”.

“The small act of giving the mower a month off, and then mowing less through the summer, can make a big difference at a time when we face interlinked climate and biodiversity emergencies,” he added.

Plantlife says no lawn is too small to make a difference. “With over 20 million gardens in the UK, even the smallest grassy patches add up to a significant proportion of our land which, if managed properly, can deliver enormous gains for nature, communities and the climate,” the event’s information page says.

How does not mowing my lawn help nature?

According to Plantlife, around 97% of Britain’s wildflower meadows have been lost in less than a century. Once widespread plants like the ragged robin and the field scabious are now on the near-threatened list in England, the conservation charity warns - despite other creatures still depending on them to survive.

Senior ecological advisor Sarah Shuttleworth said: “No Mow May matters massively because leaving lawns to just let it be in May allows a wonderful array of wild plants to flower and flourish. This floral diversity provided by more relaxed mowing regimes provides a rich food source for a wealth of wildlife through the summer.”

Pollinators, including the UK’s 270 wild bee species and 57 resident butterflies, are amongst the species most reliant on wildflowers. But as well as providing a feast for insects - which themselves may be food for birds, bats, and other wildlife - the ‘No Mow May’ movement may help provide some other environmental benefits.

More species-diverse lawns which are mowed less often may also help to reduce gardening’s carbon footprint - with the charity’s calculations estimating that all of Britain's lawns cut on a weekly regime could create 80,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per year. These lawns may also help reduce urban heat extremes, and lock away atmospheric carbon below the ground, Plantlife says.

What about once May comes to an end?

Fear not - if it turns out you’ve enjoyed having a more wildflower-friendly lawn, your efforts need not come to an end after May. Plantlife also recommends less frequent mowing through the summer months if you’d like to continue supporting insects - although if you live in an area where ticks are prevalent, it says you should consider maintaining a shorter lawn with a more regular cutting cycle.

How you care for your lawn going forwards can also help. The charity encourages gardeners to avoid herbicides, fertilisers and moss killers, which run the risk of killing off wild plants in your lawn.

You can allow plants time to release their seeds before mowing so that they’ll grow back in the future, and remove grass cuttings after you do mow to prevent nutrient build-up on the grass. Providing a mix of habitats also helps wildlife, with shorter lawns (especially those with clover) providing food for bumblebees, while longer grasses help support many different kinds of wildlife - from hedgehogs to toads.

Overall, if you can commit to mowing every four to six weeks longer term, Plantlife says you will be able to create a shorter, re-flowering lawn - one where important plants like bugle, selfheal, red clover and lady’s bedstraw can all thrive.