It might be tempting to cut the grass now that Spring is here, but Metro Mayor Dan Norris is urging residents in Bath and NE Somserset to keep their lawnmower and strimmers in the shed this No Mow May, and to let bee-friendly flowers bloom on lawns instead. 

The Metro Mayor wants residents to heed calls to leave lawnmowers alone for a month to boost flowers and the insects that rely on them, including Bath and NE Somerset's pollinator pals, and to mow less and at different lengths and frequencies through the summer. 

He said leaving lawns to get a bit shaggy helps wildflowers to flourish, providing extra food for pollinators in the area and becoming a haven for bees as well as birds, hedgehogs and other West of England wildlife big and small. 

Dan Norris said: “Giving the mower a breather for a few extra weeks, and embracing a little more wildness in our gardens, really is so, so important – for our plants, our butterflies and of course, our bee buddies. I’m really pleased more people than ever across the West of England are getting involved this No Mow May, and I encourage everyone in Bath and NE Somerset to do so. Let’s turn those trimmed green lawns into wildlife havens bursting with colour, and offering much-needed food for our precious pollinators.” 

Since No Mow May, a campaign from the charity Plantlife launched in 2019, hundreds of lawns in Bath and NE Somerset have been left to sprout. Plantlife says the campaign has more than trebled the number of people leaving their lawns long, and expects big success in 2023.