South Lyon council balks at No Mow May
Witch’s Hat owner is letting the grass grow to help environment
Erin and Ryan Cottongim were warned about violating South Lyon city ordinances last May after not mowing the grass at their business, Witch’s Hat Brewing Company, but they're vowing to let their grass grow again this spring. On behalf of the bees and butterflies, they plan to participate in “No Mow May” even if h they receive a citation from code enforcement that could result in hundred of dollars in fines. “I have a h license and 40 staff members, and playing with violations is a big move and gamble,” Erin Cottongim said. “I do plan to do it, but am I nervous? Hell yeah, I’m really nervous.”
Cottongim tried to avoid the potential conflict she is now facing by going before the City Council several times in 2023 to request that the city in southwestern Oakland County support the “No Mow May” movement, which began in 2019 in the United Kingdom.
The movement is supported by Bee City USA, which seeks to make communities more hospitable to pollinators and notes that lawns cover 40 million acres of land in the U.S. and provide little benefit to wildlife.
The Cottongims began observing No Mow May at both their South Lyon business and home in 2021, but did not receive any citations until last year.
No Mow May spreads
The movement has increasingly received formal recognition and support from local municipalities, among them: Ann Arbor and Royal Oak, which joined No Mow May in 2022, followed by Ferndale, Hazel Park and East Lansing in 2023.
Logan Applebee, zero waste manager for Ferndale, said the program has been successful for the city, with more than 700 households signing up to participate last year, with hundreds more positive social media engagements. There were only eight complaints filed with the city in May 2023 regarding overgrown grass and landscaping, and Applebee noted none of those referenced No Mow May.
The Ferndale City Council is set to participate in No Mow May again, unanimously approving the action recommended by the city’s environmental sustainability commission.
Royal Oak plans to renew No Mow May for the third time on Monday, which is Earth Day, City Commissioner Amanda Herzog said.
Approval of No Mow May, which the municipalities note is easy to do as it simply waives enforcement of existing noxious weed and long grass ordinances for the month, is not a measure the South Lyon City Council will follow.
During a September council meeting at which the Cottongims touted the benefits of establishing food sources for crucial pollinators, including bees and butterflies, council members were conflicted, citing concerns over aesthetics, seeds blowing into neighbors’ yards, and potential issues with homeowners’ association rules.
Councilwoman Maggie Kurtzweil said she was happy that interest is increasing in helping pollinators, but No Mow May wasn’t the way to help them, and could actually have a negative impact when the grass is cut in June and bees lose that habitat.
Mayor Steve Kennedy agreed.
“Pollinators have memories and know where the food is and then you’re pulling the rug out from under them in June,” he said. “No Mow May is a feel-good solution… You have 30 days of clover, but then you cut it down and have to put herbicide on the lawn because you let the weeds grow. The better goal is something longer term and to follow the recommendation of MSU extension.”
Michigan State University Extension Educator Ana Heck, who works to support pollinators, said the benefit of No Mow May is bringing awareness to bees and the landscape.
“It’s worth the campaign to show the need of having flowers and the efforts to increase flowers on the landscape,” she said. “They provide pollen and nectar for bees and other pollinators.”
Finding common ground
Still, she added, it is necessary to think holistically about supporting bees, butterflies and other pollinators beyond a month-long campaign. She cites articles from the University of Minnesota Bee Lab and Extension that support the intentions behind No Mow May efforts, but also offer tips for avoiding potential harm.
Those tips include allowing dandelions and clover to grow, but mowing before they go to seed; raising the height of lawn mower blades; and slowly cutting the grass back — as Cottongim
said she does in June, especially as she seeks to preserve nests for rabbits and other animals.
“While flowering plants in lawns can contribute to bee nutrition, we expect bees to forage in a variety of types of landscapes and habitats,” Heck said. “Bees need flowers that provide nectar and pollen from spring through fall. Meadows, trees, shrubs, pollinator gardens, and bee lawns can be important sources of forage for bees.”
The benefits of pollinator gardens, including rain gardens — like those Oakland County is encouraging residents to create in a RainSmart Rebates program — are something everyone seems to agree on.
"Maybe manicured lawns that we are so used to and putting water and fertilizer on them is not environmentally friendly," Herzog said. "We're trying to reimagine what our yards look like. Quite a few residents in Royal Oak, have torn up their yards and redone them as native gardens, instead of grass that you mow, water and fertilize."
Ferndale also embraces a planned natural landscape program which emphasizes native plantings.
The Cottongims have already removed turf grass from one section of the Witch’s Hat property, replacing it with friendly pollinator plants, including sunflowers, and have plans to do the same with another retention area.
Kennedy said the city plans to approve funds for installation of pollinator gardens at South Lyon’s Volunteer Park and along walking trails in the upcoming budget. While that wouldn’t take effect until this summer, he said it will set the stage for a long-term benefit for the pollinators.
In the meantime, Cottongim will observe No Mow May and may or may not be penalized, as Kennedy notes the ordinance officer works with property owners in a friendly manner to resolve problems and not issue tickets “as long as the property owner is working with him to get the item addressed in a timely manner.”
“I really hope South Lyon will be a pollinatorfriendly community,” Cottongim said. “Let’s do our homework and understand what we’re doing and why we’re doing it—which is caring for our property in a way that sustains life and is beautiful.”