Category: Outdoors

An idea for more pollination and less pollution

In 2019 a British nonprofit called Plantlife coined the term “No Mow May.” They proposed that gardeners leave their mowers in storage for the month of May in order to let wildflowers and weeds bloom and provide pollen and nectar for pollinators. And of course the caterpillars of many pollinators feed all our baby birds, so the ramifications are vast.

Early spring is a tough time for pollinators, especially here in New England as there are not many flowers to visit. I like the idea of a simple action that can have positive effects on so many species of wildlife.

The most obvious advantage to you is that you have a few extra hours to do other things in your garden. Next, you are not spending any money on gas or electricity. Most gas-powered mowers do not have the emission controls that are required for cars. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), one hour operating a new gasoline lawn mower emits the same amount of volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxide as driving a new car 45 miles.

According to the EPA, lawn mowers and other garden machines like leaf blowers, string trimmers, etc., contribute as much pollution as our cars and homes. The statistics on lawns are deceiving; two percent of the land mass in America is lawn. But that is more square miles of land than all the corn grown here. Roughly 80 percent of homes have at least some lawn.

If we mow our lawns from May to the end of October, that’s six months of mowing. Eliminating one month of mowing reduces those emissions by 17 percent. Good for the environment, good for the wallet.

For the last two years I have been installing trees in what was a 5-acre lawn in Hanover, N.H. So far we have planted about 150 of them — and we largely stopped the mowing, just leaving pathways throughout. The owners now have their field mowed everywhere just once every two years to control growth of unwanted woody plants like poplars, which spread by root.

We were delighted last spring to see the field come alive in spring. At least a dozen species of flowers bloomed, probably more. And the bees and other pollinators just loved it.

What happened when we just stopped mowing? Grass grew, and largely flopped over as it got taller. It was nothing like the unruly 2- or 3-foot-tall mess that the mowing guys predicted. We were always able to walk anywhere in the field even though it was not mowed. Of course, when the mowing crew shows up soon, they have big, industrial-scale mowers that will chew up anything.

For your home lawn you may want to pay attention to how tall the grass gets in May. Presumably your push mower or electric mower will not mow tall grasses as easily as the riding mowers used on the field described above. If you can only avoid mowing for two or three weeks, it’s still better than mowing it short every week in May.

Another advantage to No Mow May is that you will probably end up with a better, more resilient lawn in times of drought. The longer your grass, the more food it produces for the roots, allowing them to grow longer and deeper.

Your lawn might complain about being mowed short on June 1. So put the blades up as high as they go. The lower parts of blades of grass may be a little pale in color as they were shaded out by the taller parts. Leave your lawn a little longer this year — it doesn’t have to look like the infield of Fenway Park.

What about bare spots on the lawn? These are often filled in with crabgrass, an annual weed. For large areas, you will need to plant new lawn seed — the sooner the better. Filling in empty spots can be done in May by scratching the soil with a short-tined rake to loosen the surface. Add half an inch of compost and mix it in with the soil. Then spread seed over it — just broadcast it with your hand in small areas. I use a lawn/leaf rake to mix the seed in with the soil: I flip over the rake and drag it lightly over the area, which mixes in the seed well. If you have a metal tamper, use it to press down the planted area. If not, use a small board and step on it.

I never fertilize my lawn, and it looks fine to me. If your lawn is a little feeble, check the soil pH. If it is too acidic, you can spread some limestone. Lawn grass prefers nearly neutral pH.

So take a break from mowing this May.

Featured photo: Drumstick primroses. Photo by Henry Homeyer.

Look at all the pretty flowers!

I like to have blossoms in the garden and in vases everywhere. I try to have something blooming all the time, or as often as possible. Right now, in mid-April, I count more than 10 species of plants in bloom, along with seven species of bulb plants that are blooming by the hundred for me.

Let’s start with trees and shrubs — what I call woodies. The most unusual woody is leatherwood (Dirca palustris). This is a native woodland plant that does well in part shade. Although the literature says it prefers moist, rich soil, I have it in dry soil and it does well there.

Leatherwood has small greenish-yellow flowers that appear about the same time as forsythia — mid-April for me. Mine is slow-growing with lovely gray bark that reminds me of beeches. This is a well-mannered plant that stays 3 to 6 feet tall and wide.

February Daphne (Daphne mezereum) is in bloom now with highly fragrant pinky-purple flowers. It is originally from Europe, Turkey and Iran. I love it so much I named a corgi after it (she is now gone, alas). It stays 3 to 5 feet tall and wide. In the fall it produces small red berries.

Magnolias are in bloom now, too. My favorite is the Merrill magnolia, a hybrid that produces double white lightly fragrant flowers. I planted mine as a small tree in 2004, and now, 19 years later, it is about 40 feet tall with a spread of 25 feet. It blooms reliably (nine years out of 10) on my birthday, April 23. It is a good specimen tree to put in a lawn and will do well even if the soil is consistently moist to soggy.

Forsythias are in bloom everywhere with bright yellow flowers. If yours only blooms down low, in the area covered by snow, the buds that were formed last summer were killed by the winter cold. So get rid of it and buy a new variety such as New Hampshire Gold, Vermont Gold or Meadowlark. All are hardy throughout New England.

My favorite early spring perennial is called the drumstick primrose (Primula denticulata). It comes with flowers in purple, blue, pink, magenta and white. The florets are small and arranged in 2- to 3-inch globes on 6-inch stems. They do best in moist to wet soil in sun or partial shade.

Hellebores or Lenten Roses (Helleborus orientalis) are also wonderful spring flowers. Mine have been blooming for a couple of weeks already and will continue on for another month or so. The blossoms are five-petaled and 2 to 3 inches wide with yellow stamens in the center. Colors range from white and cream to pink, purple and nearly black. They are evergreen, but last year’s leaves should be cut off now as they are all bedraggled.

A dainty flower with beautiful finely cut foliage is a spring ephemeral called corydalis or fumewort (Corydalis solida). It pops up in my garden where it wishes, and I am always glad to welcome it. It seems to do best in moist, part shade with rich soil. The flowers on mine are small, long-spurred light blue, but other colors are also possible. There is a yellow variety of a related species (C. lutea).

Lungwort or pulmonaria (Pulmonaria spp.) is a good ground cover that is blooming for me now, too. It is interesting that a single stem might support blue, pink or apricot flowers all at once. All do well in shade or partial shade and better in moist soils than dry soils. It spreads by root.

There are at least a dozen different species of pulmonaria including P. longifolia with spotted leaves and multicolored blossoms. The one I like best is P. angustifolia, which has very intense blue flowers and solid green leaves. I’ve read that varieties or species with more white spots grow better in full sun than those with fewer or no spots.

Wildflowers are starting to bloom, including one of my favorites, bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis). These white multi-petaled flowers come up from the soil wrapped in the leaves that look like a green cigar. On cold days, or at night, the blossoms close up, but they open on sunny days when the bumblebees are working.

The bloom season of bloodroot is short, but there is double bloodroot which is sterile and blooms for a longer time. Like all bloodroots, the clumps get bigger every year, so you can dig them up and divide them to start doubles in new places. The sap from the roots is poisonous, so wear gloves when dividing any bloodroots. Do that now or in the fall.

We certainly deserve spring blossoms for having survived winter and mud season. But you do have to plan and plant for those early bloomers.

Henry is the author of four gardening books and is a 25-year veteran of the Master Gardener program. Reach him by email at [email protected].

Featured photo: Drumstick primroses. Photo by Henry Homeyer.