ALLOUEZ (NBC 26) — While some Northeast Wisconsin communities are participating in "No Mow May," the Village of Allouez is not.
The village issued a public reminder to residents on Monday to keep their lawns trimmed. All residents, which include property owners and tenants, are required to mow their lawns, the village said.
The village's statement cites ordinance §345-3 (A) (1), which says all grass, hay, brambles, brush, reeds, rushes, cattails, etc. are required to be maintained and cannot exceed seven inches in length. All cuttings should be properly disposed.
No Mow May is a movement encouraging homeowners to not mow their lawns for a month to create a hospitable environment for bees and other pollinators.
Plantlife, a British conservation charity, started the No Mow May initiative. In 2020, Israel Del Toro and Relena Ribbons, professors at Lawrence University, worked with the Common Council of Appleton to adopt No Mow May there.
Studying the effects of No Mow May on bees in Appleton, they found that the 435 homes in the no-mow project had five times the number of bees and three times more bee species than mown areas did.
Since 2020, many other communities have adopted No Mow May as well. Green Bay, De Pere and Oshkosh are participating in No Mow May this year. Allouez is not among them.
"The Village of Allouez is not participating in 'No Mow May,'" the village said in a statement.
Friday was Day 20 of No Mow May, and in downtown Appleton, some lawns have grown more than a foot tall.
This article contains content originally written by Tricia Goss.
