For Goodness Sake… Cut the Bloody Grass

Our neighbors have decided that – as an environmentally friendly gesture – they are not going to mow their lawn at the front of their house.

They have stated that they want it to be a ‘moss garden’.

They have even asked if we have any moss that we could donate….duuuh …sorry mate haven’t got any moss on me.

Three months later …is it a ‘moss garden’…?

No – it’s a bloody mess is what it is.

Ragwort is growing in profusion, dandelion and course grass are dominant and litter and dog poop are the main visual stimulants.

This is being repeated throughout the country on a misguided attempt to encourage wildlife.

Don’t get me wrong – I’m all for wildlife – but there are better ways of encouraging insects and small invertebrates than just stopping cutting roadside verges.

Maybe let the rear of your garden grow wild where birds and animals will feel a little more free to wander.

Maybe ensure that hedgehogs can traverse the length of your street via holes in fences.

But …just ….not cutting the grass ….doesn’t mean you’re going to get wildflowers and a new habitat for cute dormice…and it certainly doesn’t mean you’re getting a ‘moss garden’.

I’m sorry but this whole ‘let it grow wild’ idea is just an excuse for a lowering of standards throughout the parks gardens and road verges of every council in the country. As you drive around, it’s barely possible to see at road junctions because the vegetation is so profuse that visibility is zero.

Ok …so the insects might be having fun – but when a motorbike hits you dead centre in the side door as you pull out – I don’t think any ladybirds are going to jump out and check you’re all ok.

It’s leading to everywhere looking scruffy.

When everywhere looks scruffy, it becomes a self-serving situation in which… because it looks scruffy – it’s treated as waste land. People fly tip, people drop litter, people leave shopping trolleys and park their cars on verges.

It’s a downward spiral of crap, encouraging more crap.

Yes – lawn-mowing is a costly exercise and yes it might not be environmentally friendly – but – it shows that man has ‘control’ – it shows that we are designing and maintaining our environment and that we haven’t just ‘let it go to seed’.

All of the above and I’ve not even mentioned invasive species. I’m sorry but lack of maintenance is exactly how these unwelcome plants get a foothold in our unkempt spaces.

Around Glossop, I observe verges being left un-mown and you can now see Japanese knotweed, Goldenrod, Rosebay willow herb, Giant hogweed and Ragwort expanding their already dominant coverage of these areas.

It’s an insidious spread made less obvious by the flowers that these plants produce leading to uneducated comments of – ‘look at the wildflowers’ …duuuh these are not wildflowers – these are alien species that shouldn’t be taking over our countryside.

Let’s just complain and stop local authorities from excusing themselves from maintenance duties by using the ‘green’ argument ….and get them to fund cutting verges and maintaining road sides as well as better managing our open spaces.

Let’s get the ‘tidy’ back into our country.

Let’s get back on track and look like we know what we’re doing.

Let’s make Britain’s proud of our towns and cities.

Let’s give jobs back to garden maintenance companies.

Let’s smarten everything up.

 

Mike C …grumpy as always.