Forum home› Wildlife gardening
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

Letting my lawn go its own way…

TheGreenManTheGreenMan Posts: 1,957
in Wildlife gardening
I made the decision this year to not mow my lawn…..much! 

I’ve not cut it since the middle of May save for two strips for me to walk on (the width of the lawnmower). 

It’s currently full of creeping buttercup, daisies, clover and its flowers, as well as lots of different grasses. 

The bees are loving it. 

What I wasn’t aware of, until this morning, is that pigeons enjoy eating clover! 

I’ve just watched two of them waddling around and tucking into the clover leaves. 

It’s a lovely surprise to see that letting the lawn do what it pleases is not only making the bees happy but also the clumsy old, omnipresent pigeons. 

I imagine most people knew this about clover and pigeons but it’s new to me so I thought I’d share my delight. 

Coming to gardening two years ago, in my 40s, has definitely opened my eyes to so much stuff I was unaware of. It’s the gift that eternally gives. 

Thanks for reading my ramblings. 

J. 

Posts

  • plant pauperplant pauper Posts: 6,904
    I drafted a very similar sentiment earlier but didn't get around to posting it. 
    There are times when my grassy bit is uncuttable and a couple of years ago some cuckoo flower and ragged robin came up amongst the buttercups et al. This year, having left that bit, I have clover and some sort of wee tiny white thing too and it's lovely. I have silver weed and sorrel too and once diggerboy has finished his antics I'm going to plant up/seed the bit along the sheugh. There's a little patch of daisies near a construction site that I have my eye on and some wild foxgloves in the other sheugh. I'll collect the seed from those and give 'em a good shake. It's gonna be great!
  • joanna65joanna65 Posts: 75
    I have been doing the same for the last couple of years. I have a big patch of 'lawn' that I just leave to its own devices other than mowing a strip around it and just see what comes up, different grasses, Ox eye daisy,  red campion, plantain, clover, buttercups, herb robert and others that I haven’t identified. All bordered by ivy and a self seeded elder flower. There was a bare patch in the corner where I planted some foxgloves and threw seed heads when they are ripe so now I have fennel, feverfew, teasel all going their thing. I really enjoy watching it all evolve and I hope the insect life loves it too. 
  • CeresCeres Posts: 2,698
    Our local churchyard has turned very wild lately due to no mow May and a dearth of volunteers but the result is glorious with weeds in profusion amongst the tall grasses, and lots of butterflies flitting around. The old gravestones peep over the top of the grass and look as though they are sinking into the earth along with those they mark. I gather it is not well liked by certain people but the wildness of the vegetation has replaced a sterile environment that held little for those creatures that share the planet with us. It made me realise how much humans alter their environment and how much we can give back to nature if we just stop being so busy tidying everything up.
  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    I am getting meadow brown butterflies in my garden for the first time. I have been here over 30 years.  I also found a common plume moth on some long grass this morning and a swallowtail moth in the greenhouse.
  • Songbird-2Songbird-2 Posts: 2,349
    Ceres said:
    .......the result is glorious with weeds in profusion ......
    I really wish I could see weeds like this.....but I can't😬 Weed are anything but glorious ( to me). 
  • coccinellacoccinella Posts: 1,428
    @TheGreenMan. It's a lovely feeling isn't it? A liberation, almost. This year I also got little violets in the mix. 

    Luxembourg
Sign In or Register to comment.