REF: 66-2405-529221 - More No Mow Spaces

Your comment: Not mowing for the month of May has been fantastic, the campus is extremely beautiful with the grass and wildflowers growing out. There are also a lot of really good reasons not to mow - it's better for the bees, insects, fungus, and other wildlife, and native plants prevent erosion. I suggest more areas of campus never be mowed. The University of Nottingham is doing it. The lawns are fine, but they're nicer as meadows, they're too muddy to sit on most of the time either way. I love that the school is doing no mow may, it's a great start, but maintenance costs are lower for areas universities let go to meadow, and it's very, very beautiful.

Our response:

Thank you for the positive email regarding the No Mow May initiative.
I agree the campus is flourishing when areas of the campus are left to grow.
We are currently working to a 10-year landscape management plan which has been developed through an AU wide steering group and involves increasing the bio-diversity objectives year on year. Some of the current objectives are:
  • Improve wildlife value of amenity grasslands by reducing mowing where appropriate and reducing soil fertility by use of cut and collect machines where practical.
  • Managing significant areas of all campuses as wildflower meadows supporting a thriving array of invertebrate life.
  • Identify and maintain "scruffy" and uncultivated areas on both campuses.
  • Ensure that management of the campus grounds considers and protects biodiversity and ecosystem resilience (food and shelter for wildlife, soil biodiversity with specific legal protection of nesting birds and bat roosts).