‘No Mow May’ begins on Wednesday

EAST LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — Spring showers have started to bring out the May flowers and you may be ready to clean up your yard. However, East Lansing is encouraging people to participate in No Mow May .

It’s an environmental initiative that aims to support pollinators and this is East Lansing’s second year participating. “In Michigan, we have over 450 species of bees so there’s lots of different species of bees and also other insects that are beneficial to our ecosystem,” MSU Agriculture Extension Educator Ana Heck told 6 News.

By leaving your lawn alone experts say these pollinators are given a larger food supply and a better habitat. “The idea behind no mow may is to leave some food and natural areas out there in the environment to support our insects that are beneficial,” Heck said.

Although it’s encouraged to let your lawn grow a little longer than usual, the city is very clear that it should not overflow onto the sidewalk or become a hazard for pedestrians.

“We still need to make sure visibility for bikers, for pedestrians,” Cliff Walls, environmental sustainability and resiliency manager for East Lansing told 6 News. “The grass doesn’t get so tall to where motorists can’t see someone on the sidewalk.”

And mowing less in the spring helps more than just the bees according to Walls, “Something like 80% of our food crops that we grow are pollinated by these species such as native bees, butterflies and even many species of birds.”

If letting your lawn grow isn’t an option there are other ways to support pollinators like adding flowers and plants to your garden. But – it’s also important to grow the right plants — and not any invasive species such as buckthorn.

In East Lansing, even during No Mow May, grass cannot be higher than eight inches.

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