One homeowner tried to do the time-saving and eco-friendly thing with their lawn care but found themselves backed into a corner when a neighbor objected.
"Participated in 'No Mow May,'" they explained in their post on r/NoLawns. "Just received a warning from [the] city zone ordinance manager."
No Mow May is a campaign intended to protect spring-blooming flowers, including dandelions, so they'll be available as food sources for pollinators that wake up hungry from their long inactive period over the winter. Participants avoid mowing or spraying their lawns until June, when more flowers are blooming and the beneficial bugs have more options.
Pollinators are essential for gardens, farms, and wild environments around the globe. They carry pollen from flower to flower, which helps plants to mature and produce fruits and seeds. Without them, most familiar foods and many garden favorites would be difficult or impossible to grow, and wild ecosystems would break down.
Many eco-conscious people support letting lawns grow long for the cause, including much of the r/NoLawns community and some sympathetic neighbors. But other residents often raise a stink when a lawn isn't perfectly manicured.
That's what this Redditor said happened to them. "Apparently an anonymous caller reported my house/property for blight with regard to growing my grass out," they wrote. "It is really, really not that bad. … My house itself is immaculate."
That didn't matter to city enforcement, though. "They instructed me to mow it," the Redditor said.
"I guess May is almost over anyway," they said but added, "F*** grumpy neighbors that have nothing better to do."
Thankfully, commenters offered an option to get around the order.
"Make sure to mow the front of your lawn near the street and near any sidewalks, and when you mow do a nice shape that looks like a garden bed for the rest, then stick a sign in it," one user said, linking to an informational site. "Might not work. But it would be clear it was purposeful."
"In eco planning we call that an acceptance strip and it works very well!" another commenter added.
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