Ditch the Lawnmower This Spring

Posted on May 4, 2023 by Mass Audubon

Studies show that letting grass grow longer increases the abundance and diversity of native insects, so a change in how we approach mowing helps our native bees, butterflies, and other pollinators get a good start to the season.

Fostering early growth allows flowers to fully bloom, letting native plants like heal-all and white yarrow, and even non-natives like dandelions and common daisies become food sources for these beneficial species. An early boost helps pollinators be successful through their most active time of the year.  

high grass with small butterfly

No Mow May

The “No Mow May” movement began in the United Kingdom by Plantlife, an organization aimed at making a positive change for wildflowers, plants, and fungi. This initiative has since spread around the world, including to North America. Pollinators across the US face habitat loss, due in part to over-mowing and non-native planting. By letting native plants grow, we can play a vital role in building up the resiliency of native species.

Mowing less is a key approach for the Mass Audubon program we’re calling ’Nature by the Yard’.

For the month of May (or beyond) refrain from mowing, and let your lawn evolve into a pollinator friendly habitat. Can’t commit to the full yard? Choose a smaller section to start!

Not only does mowing less benefit our pollinators, but it also limits the use of gas-powered mowers, cuts down on the time used to maintain your lawn, and reduces water use by encouraging hardier species with deeper root systems to grow.

Other Ways to Help the Pollinators

When you give your lawn a break this spring, enjoy watching the pollinators make their way to your yard to visit the colorful blooms. You can also take action by reducing chemical use, limiting artificial lighting, reducing exotics and invasive species, leaving the leaves in the fall, and encouraging your neighbors to do the same.

Seemingly small changes add up to make a big impact. Read more about how to help our native pollinators, including a list of native and beneficial plants and pollinators you might find in your backyard.

Mass Audubon store front

History, Culture, and Nature: Four Books to Add to Your Bookshelf

Posted on April 28, 2023 by Kaylin D.

Expand your book collection with four empowering nature-based books that highlight different cultural, scientific, and personal relationships with the outdoors. From Indigenous plant botany to reclaiming the joy of nature from the roots of forced labor, here are four books to broaden your nature connection and knowledge. 

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer 

Robin Wall Kimmerer is a New York Times best-selling author, scientist, professor, mother, and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. In Braiding Sweetgrass, Kimmerer weaves together centuries-old Indigenous knowledge and western science, pinpointing ways to learn from plants and wildlife. Discover how we can reestablish and support a reciprocal relationship with the natural world in this captivating read.

“There is such a tenderness in braiding the hair of someone you love…When we braid sweetgrass, we are braiding the hair of Mother Earth, showing her our loving attention, our care for her beauty and well-being, in gratitude for all she has given us.” 

– Robin Kimmer, Braiding Sweetgrass 

The Mass Audubon Shop also sells a young adult version of Braiding Sweetgrass. 

The Home Place: Memoirs of a Colored Man’s Love Affair with Nature by Drew Lanham 

Drew Lanham, esteemed ornithologist, professor, and writer, shines a light on the complexity of being Black and enjoying nature on the same land his ancestors were forced into labor. In this memoir, Lanham dives into what it is like working in a historically white field, living in rural, southern United States, and finding freedom in nature.

“I am as much a scientist as I am a black man; my skin defines me no more than my heart does. But somehow my color often casts my love affair with nature in the shadows.”  

– Drew Lanham, The Home Place: Memories of a Colored Man’s Love Affair with Nature

Fresh Banana Leaves: Healing Indigenous Landscapes Through Indigenous Science by Jessica Hernandez 

Indigenous communities are among the most affected by climate change, even though many Indigenous peoples have long practiced sustainable and holistic management practices. Environmental scientist Jessica Hernandez pulls from her El Salvadorian and Mexican Indigenous heritage to dissect the issues of western environmental conservation and highlight the depth of Indigenous science.

“I hope this book can help Indigenous scholars, community members, and our relatives see themselves as scientists. I believe every Indigenous person carries their own scientific knowledge; for some of us it just means that we have to reclaim our knowledge that has been lost because of settler colonialism and how it impacted us individually.” 

– Jessica Hernandez, Fresh Banana Leaves: Healing Indigenous Landscapes Through Indigenous Science 

The Colors of Nature: Culture, Identity, and the Natural World, edited by Alison Hawthorne Deming & Lauret Savoy 

This collection of essays features over 30 authors of color who share their relationship with nature through a cultural lens. Adding a new perspective to environmental literature, The Colors of Nature explores the lasting impact of the natural world and different cultural identities.

“Today I feel a sense of liberation…Despite the dark energy that still must pervade Manzanar’s [Japanese American Internment Camp] ruins, I feel only lightness as we drive past on the highway.” (Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston, Crossing Boundaries) 

– Edited by Alison H. Deming and Lauret E. Savoy, The Colors of Nature: Culture, Identity, and the Natural World