Springwatch presenter Michaela Strachan says people should ‘be lazy’ and not mow their lawns, forgetting the obsession with ‘bowling green’ gardens.
Her plea comes just days after the end of the ‘no-mow May’ craze in which people deliberately keep their gardens scruffy in order to benefit wildlife and wildflowers.
The campaign which was started by conservation charity Parklife in 2019, urges residents to ‘liberate their lawns’ by mowing less.
However, the no-mow movement has proved controversial with neighbours complaining about unsightly mess and swarms of insects.
BBC presenter Strachan said it was the best move to help wildlife in gardens and that people should forget the ‘obsession’ with having a neat lawn.
She said: ‘The best thing you can do is not mow your lawn.
‘We’ve gone through the stage of people being obsessed with having this sort of bowling green lawn.
‘And it’s no good for the insects, no good for pollinators.
‘If you think of all the amazing flowers that can be part of the lawn, we have to learn to embrace them.
‘We’ve lost so many of our insects – butterfly numbers are down, insects’ general numbers are down.’
Strachan, 58, said that the country has lost lots of natural meadows and if anyone with a garden tried to make a meadow, it would make a huge difference to the biosphere and help pollinators.
She added: ‘It’s such a simple thing to do. So basically I’m saying to everyone, be a bit lazy, leave the mower in the shed, and don’t mow May, let it bloom in June, maybe just mow every four weeks.’
The No-mow May campaign caused controversy last year after locals in the Heathcote area of Leamington Spa, Warwickshire blamed the movement for a fly invasion.
Mother-of-four Di Drinkwater, 59, said: ‘They are everywhere and it turns my stomach.
‘We bought two electric zappers and lavender candles but it doesn’t make any difference, every room you go in they are there.
‘I think there are several causes of the influx of flies this year, from climate change, letting lawns and gardens grow and leaving food scraps out in bins.
‘There’s nothing much we can do about it but we’re just having to try and live with them.’
The movement has proved divisive with some people supporting the campaign, even though they know it may offend some of their neighbours.
One person wrote on social media, posting a picture of their weed-infested lawn: ‘The neighbours may not be overly impressed by a garden full of dandelions going to seed but the four little goldfinches visiting today seem to appreciate them.
‘Yes, I know it’s still April – just gearing up.’
A 2019 survey by Plantlife revealed most gardeners mow every two weeks on average.
According to a report in the journal Biological Conservation, 97 per cent of British wildflower meadows have disappeared since the 1930s.
A study published in the journal Nature Communications showed that many British pollinating insects are in decline, with rarer species, such as the red-shanked carder bee, really struggling.
Between 1980 and 2013, every square kilometre in the UK lost an average of 11 species of bee and hoverfly.
The reasons behind it were the use of insecticides, habitat loss and an overall reduction in biodiversity.
An experiment by Plantlife found that not avoiding in May saw an increase in the growth of daisies, germander, speedwell and creeping buttercup.
The species that benefitted changed each month. After stopping mowing for another month in July, participants saw a resurgence of white clover, self-heal and bird’s foot trefoil.
The average square-metre patch of lawn surveyed after the experiment produced enough nectar to support almost four honey bees per day.