If you’re new here, welcome! To receive The Weekly Dirt in your inbox every week…
Hi, guys!
Last week’s No Mow May discussion (and my AP column this week on the topic) has taken on a life of its own — here in the comments, in my inbox and on social media — with 100% of the feedback in agreement that’s it’s not a good practice.
A sampling of your remarks:
Hell no! I will be mowing. [There are] way too many weeds. —Ruth Trotman
Set the blade of the mower to 4” or higher – that gets the worst of the invasives but leaves the violets, etc. —Judith Fetterley
No way! Not mowing it would be an issue for the points you mentioned, and I would be concerned about my three-legged dog getting hurt in her attempts to keep critters of all kinds out of our yard! —Kathy Burrous
By June, my neighbor’s yard completely goes to seed, so I am against it. —Mary Fjellstad
I am totally against No Mow May. It’s not good for the lawn to be cut so drastically in June after a long growth. Also, all creatures, good and bad, will have made homes in the long grass, only to be upended. It’s better to make an effort to reduce the amount of lawn than to skip mowing in May. —Kathy Readinger
You have brought up some valuable points against no mow. However, the lawn is basically useless as a habitat, and it uses a huge amount of precious water, which should be a major concern in arid areas. It is a system out of balance, encouraging all of the problems you mentioned. Replace the lawn with native plants. The pollinators, birds and wildlife will thank you for food, nesting material and shelter. You will be rewarded with water-wise habitat and beauty instead of a lawn monoculture. —Patisu Lambert
I live in an apartment, so I don’t do lawn maintenance [but] it sounds to me as though the disadvantages [of No Mow May] outweigh the advantages. —Larry Lospinuso
About 2014, I stopped mowing altogether. I now have lots more butterflies, more varieties of bugs and birds, more shade, and it’s cooler in the summer. No lawnmower or smell of gas or lawn fertilizer in the garage. Downsides? I can’t think of many. I don’t think that not mowing in May will make a huge difference. But each person rethinking how to manage their own yard will. —Caroline Abeln
I plan on mowing as usual for all the reasons you mentioned. Plus, you’ll use the same amount of gas if you wait a whole month, especially this time of year. The carbon footprint would actually be worse with everyone mowing the first week in June. —Pat Smith
As a Miller Place, NY, resident, ticks are already an issue. With No Mow May, it would be an infestation with Lyme or other tick-borne diseases. —Bob Maines
I can’t do a whole month of no mowing because I use a reel mower. I would have MORE than a difficult time mowing! However, we’re thinking about ways to reduce the lawn size to add more good/native plants. —Walter Maier
I let some of the grass grow in one section of the garden. Some birds find it much easier to forage in short grass. A little bit of everything for everyone! —Jo Thompson
📬 Ask Jessica
DEAR JESSICA: With regard to your information about not mowing the lawn for a month, I have two questions/concerns:
Is it true that whenever one does not cut their grass every week, the roots grow longer underground, making the grass blades stronger [and better looking]?
If one lets grass overgrow, how can it be cut properly? —Frank Giordano, Seaford, NY.
DEAR FRANK: I’m glad you asked.
Yes and no. It’s true that longer grass develops a stronger root system and, therefore, a healthier lawn than short grass. But that guideline is meant to discourage setting your mower lower than 3”, not letting the grass grow beyond 4”.
Tamson Yeh, a turf specialist with the Cornell Cooperative Extension, explains that when you cut at 3-4 inches, you’re nipping the tips, so the grass won’t go to seed, which could be fatal for it.
That length also allows enough tissue to remain so the grass can photosynthesize and feed its roots, plus new and existing growth. A 3-4-inch lawn also shades itself and keeps the crown (the spot where the bottom of the blades meet the roots) cool, conserves moisture and discourages weeds.
Cutting the grass too short results in short roots, hot soil, low soil moisture, damaged crowns, a sparse lawn and more weeds.
Never cut the lawn by more than one-third its height, no matter how tall it is. That could send it into shock. Instead, gradually bring it back to a healthy height (again 3-4 inches) over several mowing sessions.
💡 If you do one thing this week…
ENTER ONE (OR BOTH!) OF MY SPRING GIVEAWAYS!
Mother’s Day is next week, and I’m thinking back to when my girls were little. I loved their handmade pencil cups and being served breakfast in bed. But what I appreciated most was the time spent together. One year, we all went to the New York Botanical Garden, which was holding a festival. Another, we took in a concert. But my favorite activities were the simple ones, like just puttering about in the garden.
So I’m holding two giveaways for moms (or anyone, really) this year. One for those who would appreciate fostering a love of gardening in their little ones and another for those who enjoy curling up with a really good book.
First up is this adorable yet fully functional, 30-piece child’s gardening collection from Curious Gardener (above, right).
There’s no better way to encourage little green thumbs than with tools and supplies that are just their size. This set includes a trowel, shovel, hand rake, garden sheers, watering can, kneeling pad, six nursery pots, six watering drains, seven garden markers, a pair of M/L gardening gloves, a gardening hat, apron, storage tote, two garden marker sticker sheets and a bonus sticker set and supply list.
Next up is “Soil,” by Camille T. Dungy (above, left).
As I wrote in Newsday today, “Soil is a different kind of book about gardening. It’s the memoir of a Black woman who moved her family into a predominantly white neighborhood and planted a native plant (and wildlife) sanctuary among the manicured, cookie-cutter yards in her new homeowners-association-regulated community. The diversity in her garden is a metaphor for the diversity her family brought to the block, and the hours she spends nurturing the garden -- and her daughter – define motherly love. A personal, relaxed and engaging writing style gives readers the sense they’re reading a soul-bearing letter from a dear friend who explains what she knows about compost, birds, and sunflowers as she takes us along on a journey to build her hard clay soil and her place in the world.”
To enter:
Shoot me an email with either “SOIL” or “CURIOUS GARDENER” in the subject line (to enter both, you must send two separate emails) by 11:59 p.m. tonight, May 7, 2023.
Include your full name and mailing address.
I’ll randomly select winners and get giveaways in the mail first thing tomorrow morning. No guarantees of delivery by Mother’s Day, but depending on where you live, it’s possible. Official rules are here.
👏 Sunday shoutout
Linda Santorello writes, “It seems the cherry tree flowers come and go so quickly. Sometimes, the branches are just as interesting as the flowers.”
📰This week in my Associated Press gardening column
I write a weekly gardening column for the AP, so you might have seen my byline in your local paper (or news website) — wherever in the world you happen to be. In case you miss it, though, I’ll post the most recent here every week.
This week, I went against the grain and wrote about why No Mow May is a terrible idea. Surprisingly, the internet did not cancel me.
Before that, I wrote about soil pH, why it’s essential for healthy plants, how to test it and what to do if it’s out of whack.
A week prior: tips for selecting trees that will survive climate change and what to do about less-resilient ones you may already have in your yard.
You can read all my AP gardening columns here.
📚📺🎵 Random things I enjoyed this week
Grounds for Sculpture. An outdoor, giant sculpture museum (as well as a giant-sculpture museum!) in Hamilton, New Jersey. I felt like a Lilliputian!
Rats restaurant (also in Hamilton, NJ). At first, this sounded like a terrible name for a restaurant, but then I learned it was named after a character in the classic book, “The Wind in the Willows.” The view from our outdoor table overlooked a living replica of Monet’s waterlily pond and his Japanese bridge at Giverny, France. It’s on OpenTable’s list of 100 Best Al Fresco Restaurants in America.
Does anyone else have a pile of plants waiting to get planted by their front door, or is it just me?
I also had to make TWO trips to the DMV in a single day, am judging entries in Garden Communicators International (GardenComm) annual Media Awards and have been “permanently suspended” from Twitter in a bizarre mix-up.
If posting photos of plants is wrong, I don’t want to be right!
This newsletter is member-supported
I’m a freelance writer who juggles various gigs to piece together a living. I spend hours every week writing The Weekly Dirt, answering your questions and sharing advice to help you achieve the garden of your dreams, so this, too, needs to be part of my livelihood. If you work for a paycheck, I’m sure you’ll agree.
I considered putting it behind paywall and charging a subscription fee, but although I am reserving that as a last resort, I’d rather not go that route because I understand that not everyone can afford even a nominal fee, and I genuinely love helping people garden better.
When I discovered the Buy Me a Coffee platform, it seemed like the perfect solution: A voluntary, tip-as-you-go sort of system that keeps the newsletter free for everyone, but provides the option to place the cost of a cup of coffee in my virtual tip jar every week — or as often as you are able and feel comfortable.
So if you find value in receiving The Weekly Dirt and would like me to continue writing it, please consider supporting my work by “buying me a coffee.”
This week’s newsletter was made possible by the generous support of JoAn G., Kathleen Attard, Debbie Wood, Diana C., Kathy Burrous, Ele, Michelle Garnier Winkler, Al Quackenbush, Carol Kessler, Bob Maynes and a few shy types who wished to remain anonymous. Many, many thanks — we wouldn’t be here without you!
Let’s be friends! Follow me:
@jessicadamiano on Facebook
Until next week, stay safe. Be well. And always keep your mind in the dirt. —Jessica
View draft history
I remember when I moved from the Bronx to Levittown in 1992. I wasn’t used to “a lawn” and was excited to have a little one. It was a shady property so a lush lawn and watering wasn’t crucial. But in Massapequa Park, it was a larger and demanding lawn on a corner. I made my created gardens large to reduce the lawns. Now up in Cape Cod, I am starting to reduce my lawns again but there’s the HOA….