No Mow May: 8 Benefits of Not Mowing Your Lawn
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Codee Chessher
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In spring and summer, most people are firing up their lawn mowers to combat unruly lawns. However, most people aren’t aware that cutting your grass regularly can actually be bad for your lawn. By cutting your grass less frequently or not at all, you can realize some surprising benefits. Let’s check out some of the reasons you should put your lawnmower away and let your lawn grow out.
The 8 Benefits of Not Mowing Your Lawn
1. Increase Biodiversity
Lawn heights vary, but 1 inch is a fairly standard number. The problem with cutting your grass so low is that you prevent and discourage biodiversity from growing on your lawn. Neatly trimmed lawns are typically monocultures, meaning nothing else lives in the area. By foregoing the weekly trim, you can invite butterflies, bees, birds, and other beneficial wildlife to your yard.
2. Add Some Color
Letting your grass grow doesn’t only attract animals, but also plants. Dandelions, clovers, and other common plants usually labeled as weeds can brighten up your lawn and break up the dull “green desert” effect. Other meadow plants make great bouquets, and native plants in your yard help to increase wildlife populations in your area, too! While neatly trimmed lawns are a common status symbol, they’re not all they’re chalked up to be.
3. Cut Down on Pollution
When you say pollution, most people think of factories spewing smoke and car exhaust, but most lawn mowers run on gasoline, too. Every time you use a typical gas-powered lawn mower, you contribute to airborne pollution. You can help reduce groundwater pollution by not cutting your grass, so you can save on gas and reduce your carbon footprint. Sounds like a win-win to us.
4. Save Time & Energy
Mowing your grass can be a tiring time suck, especially if you have a push mower. Depending on how big your yard is, you can save a lot of time by skipping mowing for the week. This gives you more valuable free time and energy that you can devote to hobbies, family time, or other leisurely pursuits. Time is a finite resource for all of us, and this is an easy way to get more of it regularly.
5. Save Water
Landscaping irrigation takes up as much as a third of all water usage, according to the EPA. By letting drought-resistant and beneficial plants grow in your lawn, you can drastically cut down on how much water your lawn needs. You’ll quickly realize that most lawns don’t need a ton of water to thrive, and your water bill will reflect this.
6. Ditch the Traditional Lawn
Regular lawns are pretty and make for great outdoor play spaces, but you can ditch the maintenance a lawn needs and still have a great landscape. By growing wildflowers and other meadow plants, you can transform your dull, needy lawn into a gorgeous wildflower meadow. This cuts down on water and mowing time, and attracts pollinators all in one fell swoop. Uniform lawns are neat, but everyone loves flowers.
7. Help the Bees
Bees have been facing a very public population decline, which negatively impacts food production worldwide. By letting your yard go and letting other plants grow, you encourage bee population growth, which incrementally helps alleviate food supply woes. On average, letting one lawn grow out can help support 400 bees per day.
8. Reduce Pests
Cutting your lawn gets rid of beneficial insects that normally control problem pests. Bugs like ladybugs, lacewings, and others help reduce pest populations in your yard. By letting native plants grow, you attract beneficial insects and pollinators alike, which will decrease and discourage pest populations nearby. Without the types of plants these beneficial creatures like, your yard won’t develop into a healthy micro-ecosystem.
Conclusion
Cutting the grass is a drag for everyone, but you can do everyone a favor and retire the mower. By letting your grass grow, you can attract beneficial wildlife, reduce pests, save water, and enjoy numerous other benefits. While many improvements require active effort, this is one of the easiest ways to reap myriad benefits with no effort at all.
Featured Image Credit: PublicDomainPictures, Pixabay
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