How to Participate?

​To promote and educate the community about the critical period of pollinator emergence, the month of May 2025 has been designated as No Mow May in the City of Wisconsin Rapids. The Common Council adopted the resolution at their March 18 meeting. You can find the press release HERE.

​Participation in the No Mow May initiative is voluntary and free of charge. City residents and property owners who are interested in participating may do so without registering. The City has suspended the enforcement of Chapter 36, Section 302.4, of our Municipal Code city-wide for the month of May 2025. Properties must be brought back into compliance by June 4, 2025 (which provides a grace period in recognition of weather or scheduling limitations). Properties that aren't compliant by the deadline will be subject to regular penalties for long grasses or weeds. 

Each City of Wisconsin Rapids property is eligible to receive one free yard sign, but we have a limited number of yard signs available. Please keep your yard sign for future No Mow May programs. Additional yard signs can be purchased for $10 each. Yard signs can be picked up at the Mayor's Office on the 3rd floor of City Hall, 444 West Grand Ave., Monday through Thursday between 8 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. or Fridays between 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. . You may also contact Emily at [email protected] to schedule a time to pick up a sign. 

Resources

Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation provides a variety of data and materials related to conservation of invertebrates and their habitats.

Bee City USA provides a variety of information and materials related to pollinators, plants, pesticides, sustainability and initiatives.  

Plantlife, an organization based in the United Kingdom, first popularized the No Mow May initiative. Their websites provides data and recommendations. 

Visit the McMillan Library to request additional literature on pollinators. 

Clean Green Action is a grass roots environmental group in Wisconsin Rapids that began in 2008. 

Protecting Pollinators and Improving Pollination in Wisconsin Cranberry Marshes provides information on how pollinators are important to cranberry growers.

On pages 2-3 of this issue of the Cranberry Crop Management Journal provides resources about pollinator gardens, and which species of pollinator support plants do best in low pH soils. It is common for cranberry growers to keep pollinator patches on farm to encourage wild pollinators to supplement honey and bumblebee efforts—and since cranberry growers usually have low pH soils, the seed mixes available to homeowners are not always tailored for our soils. 

​Download a coloring page by clicking below! ​

Why?

​The goal of No Mow May is to provide early season forage for native pollinators by reducing our mowing intensity during a month when foraging resources are limited. Allowing lawns to grow longer, without treating them with chemical pesticides or herbicides, leads to an increase in the number and types of native plants, which are a great source of food for pollinators, such as bees and butterflies. Additionally, it provides important insect habitats for those that are still in diapause (a type of hibernation) in early spring. Native weed growth in May is particularly important because many other spring blooms have not yet emerged. 

​“Less Mow May” and “Slow Mow Summer” have emerged as alternative catch phrases for the movement to change lawn care practices in support of native pollinators. Whether “no mow,” “less mow,” or “slow mow,” the objectives are the same. Residents are encouraged to consider the following guidelines:

• Lawns that are chemically treated for weeds and pests will not be very beneficial for pollinators, even if they are allowed to grow for a full month. Consider limiting or eliminating chemical treatments.
• Native flowering plants, such as white clover, creeping charlie and dandelions, provide important food for pollinators. Consider allowing native plants to flower, then mow before they go to seed.
• Mowing grass several inches all at once is hard on plant health, leaving the grass vulnerable to drought. Consider allowing the grass to grow to 6-8" before cutting the tips off at your highest mower deck height. Increase deck heights and cut less frequently all growing season.
  (Chapter 36, Section 302.4 of City code allows grasses up to 7”.)
• Hibernating pollinators can’t safely emerge in early spring. Leaves provide important insulation for hibernating bees, moths and butterflies, and some bees nest in stems until June or later. Consider waiting to remove winter leaves from your yard until you notice blooming trees and flowers with active bees. Leave past season’s stems alone and allow the new growth to cover them. If you want to remove the stems, find a place to safely stash the cut stems until the bees that might be nesting in them have a chance to emerge. Compost the stems in midsummer. 

​Questions? 

Questions about the program can be directed to the Mayor's Office at 715-421-8216 or [email protected]. 

Questions about lawn care ordinances can be directed to the Community Development Office at 715-421-8228 or [email protected].

Questions about how to dispose of residential lawn clippings can be directed to the Street Department at 715-421-8218 or [email protected].